


My Faceless Bus Stalker Alpha

by Thirdly



Category: Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Drama, Gay, M/M, Male Slash, Romance, Shapeshifting, Were-Creatures
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-22
Updated: 2019-07-09
Packaged: 2019-08-05 16:23:17
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 36,142
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16371011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thirdly/pseuds/Thirdly
Summary: As if it wasn't bad enough that Avion was a Yorkshire Terrier shifter with albinism, he also had to deal with his impending birthday and a crazy Alpha.





	1. 01

"That is the ugliest nose I've ever seen."

" _You tryin' to start something with me?"_ I hissed.

"I'm just curious…does that nose carry on to your human form?"

I felt all eyes on me when I let out a growl that was so deep and low that it was generally hard to accept that it came out from such a small Yorkshire Terrier.  _"I don't have to answer you."_ I replied.

"That sounds like a yes to me **,"** the Doberman Pinscher taunted. His fur was a dark, satiny brown with a lighter hued brown underneath. The amber eyes could have been considered beautiful if they weren't filled with such mockery.

The two of us couldn't have been more different in appearance. I had albinism, so my entire pelt was white. My eyes lacked so much pigment that they appeared lilac. But, it was still my nose that stood out the most. It was a pale and vibrant pink. Though I knew that in my human form only my lips and the tips of my ears were a similar pink, it wasn't any of  _his_  business what color my nose was.

Naturally, I rushed forward and bit one of his forelegs. Growing up, I had no shortage of bullies that would make fun of the way I looked, whether I was in canine or human form. But, I refused to take it lying down.

After a scuffle involving barking, growling, and more biting, the Doberman managed to pin me onto my back with one single paw. His muzzle appeared much larger when it snarled a mere inch from my own. But, the fight hadn't left my eyes and my gaze was as unflinching as it was unrepentant. I didn't care that he was three times bigger than me.

" _ **Boys! ENOUGH!"**_

At first, both of us fought the Alpha Scholar's command. The Doberman was an Alpha himself, so he could easily disregard another Alpha's commands if he wanted to. I was a Budding Beta, so I was able to fight the command for a good while before ultimately submitting to it, and the Doberman knew it. He waited until my head fell to the side in surrender before finally stepping off of me. The expression on his face was of snide satisfaction.

Though the response was involuntary, I still felt humiliated having been forced to back down.

My first day at university was going swimmingly so far.

::::

The reason I chose to come to Malamute University was because I didn't have to live at a dorm. The commute by bus was only twenty minutes. I wanted to study to become a history scholar and, while I was at it, find another Beta to date…if I lucked out on my birthday, of course.

The first class of the day had been, essentially, a daily assembly. All students, regardless of what year they were in, had to gather first thing in the morning in their canine forms. In all of our other classes, we were required to be in human form. Though it was obviously supposed to be a time to mingle and for new students to feel welcomed, some fights broke out over dominance.

Usually, the fights were Alphas sizing one another up. Sometimes, even Betas sized one another up. But, Betas rarely challenged Alphas. They were still susceptible to Alpha commands. Not nearly as susceptible as Omegas, but susceptible just the same.

Omegas tended to stay out of all fights. Their partnered Alphas fought in their stead and protected them.

It was sickening.

I've had a few Beta friends that matured into Omegas as soon as they turned eighteen. Male and female alike, as soon as they were claimed by an Alpha, they became so smitten that they were barely themselves anymore. I was tired of losing friends to "maturity." Many Alphas were possessive and controlling, not allowing my friends to even hang out with me anymore.

Not all Betas matured into Omegas. If Betas turned 18 without any changes, then they were Betas for the rest of their lives.

Me?

To be honest, I was terrified.

See…I wasn't 18 yet. I skipped a grade when I was younger cause I was a bit of a smart ass. So, I graduated from high school at 17. My birthday wasn't until October 31st. That's right, my birthday was on Halloween. If there were any way I could fast forward past Halloween this year without changing my Beta status, I'd gladly do it.

"Avion!"

I turned towards the sound of my name. Since it had been pronounced correctly, "Ah-vee-ohn," I knew that it had to be one of my friends. Sabine, in this case. Long story short, my mom gave birth to me while on an airplane. She had been seated next to an elderly Chihuahua and had asked her what the word for "airplane" was in Spanish. And there you have it, my name means airplane. You wouldn't believe how many times I had to correct scholars from trying to call me "Avon" (no, Avon's not calling) or "Ay-vee-on" over the years.

"Avion, it's only the first day and I heard you already got into a fight with that Alpha Derrick?" Sabine questioned. She was a sandy-haired labradoodle and a Beta.

"Derrick?" I snorted. "Was that his name? Derrick the Doberman?"

"I heard his parents are big-time patrons for the campus," she warned. "I'd steer away from him if I were you."

"I don't care if his parents are in the CIA, I'm still gonna defend myself," I refuted.

"Alright, then try not to die in the process," Sabine insisted.

"If I do, you know who the number one suspect is," I pointed out.

"You saying you'll haunt me until I turn him in?" She joked.

"Maybe."

She shook her head at my response. "Anyway, you still hang out with Morgan?"

"Last I checked we were still best friends," I said. "So, yeah. Why?" Morgan was a chocolate Labrador with light brown eyes. He was also a Beta despite his size. Morgan was special in the way he managed to befriend everyone regardless of the status. He was friendly with Omegas, Betas, and Alphas without thinking about it twice.

"Is he currently seeing anyone?" She asked.

Betas had a lot more flexibility in terms of partners. They could easily be partnered with Alphas or fellow Betas. And though it was rare, some Betas even managed to partner with Omegas. The rarest combination of all was an Alpha/Alpha pairing. Alphas were so dominant that it was difficult for them to get along intimately with another Alpha.

"No, I don't think so," I finally answered. "He tried to go out with a Greyhound for a while during the summer, but it didn't really work out."

That was another thing that was so flexible about Betas. Unless attached to a serious Alpha or Omega partner, they were able to date freely. Alphas and Omegas made such strong connections with their partners that they generally mated for life. I wanted to have the same kind of freedom with dating that Sabine and Morgan already had.

But, I had to turn eighteen first.

::::

I found Morgan in my elective Humanities class. We sat down next to each other and were able to catch up on our summer adventures before and after class. I saw a glint of interest in his brown eyes when I mentioned that Sabine wanted to know if he was still available to date.

"Sabine? Really?" Morgan wondered aloud.

"Yeah, she asked me if you were seeing anyone and she seemed pretty happy when I told her you were back on the market," I snickered. "Gonna give her a chance?"

"You know it," Morgan admitted. "What about you? Anyone catch your eye?"

"I wish," I sighed. "Nothing yet."

A frown then formed on Morgan's face. "Your argument with Derrick this morning keeps getting more and more exaggerated as it goes through the gossip grapevine. People are trying to say they saw you beating him up before he managed to pin you down."

I let out a small groan. "It wasn't even much of a fight. He insulted me; I bit him. He pinned me down, and then a Scholar broke it up."

"I just don't want you to be making enemies of Alphas. At least not until after…"

Though he trailed off, I knew what he was talking about. He wanted me to lay low until after my birthday, and he had a right to worry. If I  _did_  mature into an Omega after my birthday, then that would mean that I'd become even  _more_ susceptible to Alpha commands. Any Alpha who has it out for me could easily exact their revenge on me then.

"I don't plan on making anyone an enemy," I countered. "But, that doesn't mean I won't continue to stand up for myself."

Morgan didn't look very happy with me after hearing that.

:::::::::::::

Due to Morgan and Sabine's concerns, I was on my best behavior in the weeks that followed. I didn't get into any other fights with Alphas. Everyone settled into an easy routine of going to classes and it was relatively peaceful for the month that followed.

But, then my birthday approached.

Though I tried to deny it, I felt my body changing. Whether it was changing to become more Beta or Omega, I couldn't tell. My only shred of hope was that Morgan and Sabine said that they also felt their bodies reacting strangely when they turned 18, as well.

Shit really hit the fan on the morning of my birthday.

First of all, October the 31st landed somewhere in the middle of the week that year, which meant that I couldn't avoid coming to class.

So, I commuted to my classes in the same way I usually did, by taking the bus. The bus that morning was so packed that I had to hold onto one of the yellow poles that ran along the sides of the seats in the aisle. As soon as 7AM hit, I felt everything change. My body became dizzy and I had to clutch the pole tightly to not collapse. Strange new scents assaulted my nose.

It was almost as if I could tell who was an Alpha on the bus by their scent alone. For some reason, I became aware of the Alphas far more than any of the Betas and Omegas. One would think that they'd smell musky or masculine, but I was smelling food. I'm talking about sizzling bacon, mushroom truffles, oranges, olive oil… and I swore that the guy sitting down next to me smelled of dark chocolate. My mouth started to water. It was the strangest and scariest experience of my life.

My phone slipped out of my hoodie pocket and fell on the floor. I bent down at the same time as the man who was seated next to me reached down. Our fingers brushed, and I felt as if I were breaking out in a fever.

The man's skin was downright searing to me; as if it burned my fingers.

I was so frightened that, as soon as the bus stopped in front of the campus, I ran through the doors before anyone else got a chance to stand up. My phone was the last thing on my mind as I ran through the entrance of Malamute University. All of my senses became further and further attuned to the Alphas all around me.

I didn't know how it was possible, but I could  _tell_  which Alphas had partners and which were available. Those that were with mates had softer scents. Those that weren't attached had much stronger scents.

I tried to get to one of the bathrooms, but I knew that I wasn't going to make it. So, I ducked into an empty classroom to hunt down a trashcan. I felt queasy enough to hurl. Before I even reached the trashcan, I heard the door of the classroom close shut behind me. I straightened up, but before I could get a good look at who it was…

" **Don't turn around. Stay where you are."**

The Alpha command kept me in place, but I swore I felt my bones downright trembling as I tried desperately to fight against it. In spite of my efforts, I couldn't go against the command. When I was a Beta, I was at least able to delay the hold of an Alpha command or bend it.

As an Omega, I was helpless. I tried my best to force some of the terror down and noticed that the voice was familiar. I tried to identify it, but then I remembered that I generally heard many Alphas day in and day out in all my classes. I just couldn't narrow my guess down.

I heard the Alpha coming closer and his scent seemed to go up through my sinuses and into my very brain. He smelled like dark chocolate. My body was becoming quite hungry for it, and I wasn't even that much of a fan of chocolate. Through his scent, I could somehow tell that he was strong and almost  _painfully_ available. My inner canine wanted nothing more than for me roll onto my back and wag my tail for him.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the Alpha's hand placing my phone on the scholar's desk. Could it be that all he wanted to do was return my phone? He seemed to be a fellow student, if he was able to follow me so quickly without getting lost in the crowd. I was usually more aware of the people around me on the bus, but that morning was so fucked up that I didn't remember ever getting a good look at his face.

I inhaled sharply when I felt a cold nose against the back of my neck and a pair of hands touching my shoulders. When had the hood of my hoodie fallen back? Probably while I was running through the campus. He seemed to be breathing my scent in and I wanted to do the same to him so badly that it almost hurt. I felt his warm tongue swipe along my neck and shivered.

To my horror, I felt a slippery substance starting to secrete from a lower region of my body that never had such a substance inside it before,  _ever_. I started to freak the fuck out.

At least, my  _mind_ did…my body was too busy melting under his slightest touch. I was at such odds with myself that I felt tears starting to brim in my eyes.

I swallowed hard. He hadn't ordered me to keep quiet, so I tried to reason with him.

I took a moment to clear my throat. "D-Do I know you?" I prompted.

I felt his smile against the crook of my neck. "Yes…and no," he replied as his hands began to slowly rub up and down my upper arms.

Once again, I felt a tingle through my brain as I tried to identify that voice. Before I could even ask, he spoke again.

"So, you haven't matured until now," he mused to himself. He sounded a little too pleased about that fact. "I can't  _believe_  you're actually an Omega."

"Who  _are_  you?" I tried again. The longer he kept touching me, the less my body trembled with fear. Yet, my mind still felt that I was in real danger. Since I hadn't formed a bond with any Alpha yet, the Alpha behind me could do anything he wanted with me; at least until students trickled in to the room for their next class. What was the schedule for that particular classroom again?

" **Close your eyes and keep them closed. Then, slowly turn around and sit down on this desk."** He instructed.

"Wh-why?" I questioned even as my body dutifully obeyed. I gulped hard when I felt him step closer until he was standing between my legs. The proximity of the warmth of his body made me feel another wave of dizziness. But, I didn't have any time to feel mortified about it.

I felt a hand on my chin and then the warmth of a pair of soft, full lips against my own. My brain all but shut down after that. I don't know when or why my lips parted but the next thing I knew a large, warm tongue began to take over my mouth.  _Oh hell._ His very tongue tasted like the creamiest mug of hot chocolate. I found myself kissing him back with fervor, my own tongue taking over  _his_ mouth until I was downright sucking on that delicious tongue. At some point, even my hands were clutching the back of his head to keep him in place. I was so aroused that my pants were starting to feel too tight.

I almost fell off the desk when he suddenly took a step back and my upper body instinctively tried to follow him. Huh? The fuck just happened? Where were we again? What were we doing? I felt like I was losing my mind just a little.

" _I don't know how much of this is really you or just your Omega instincts_ …" He whispered more to himself than to me. "I didn't realize it would be so important to me."

Even though my eyes were still closed, I frowned. "What are you saying?" I asked him when I finally began to regain my senses. "Instincts?"

I heard him make a noise of frustration. "I intend to claim you, Avi." He said as his lips brushed the area of the neck he had licked earlier. Hold on just a second. How did he even know my name?

No one had ever called me just "Avi" before. A part of me really liked the sound of it. The other part pointed out that I hadn't given him permission to call me that.

The Alpha then let out a sigh.  **"Until I can figure this out, you are not to accept any other Alpha's intentions or affection. The same goes for Betas and even other Omegas."**

"Wait, then how am I supposed to know if it's you or not if you don't let me see you?" I argued weakly. How did I even begin to follow that command? What if another Alpha tried to hang out with me?

A chuckle. "Don't worry, you'll be able to tell the difference. I bet you already even know my scent. You're an Omega now and, in time, you'll be mine."

Other than the scent thing, none of what he was saying was really making sense to me. It sounded like he wanted to court me, but blindly. Really? And just what the hell was all that bullshit about my being  _his_  in time?

"I programmed my number into your phone," He continued.

When had he found the time to do that? Oh, right…I was confused for a good while back there.

" **You can respond to my texts, but you are not to call me and you are not to give anyone else my contact information. Do not ask anyone else to call or text me through your phone, either."**

"Why the hell not?" I all but huffed. "What's with all this secrecy? Are you really that ugly?"

I felt a change in his stance and realized that I might have stepped on a landmine.

The next thing I knew, he took my hands and dragged them down his face, neck, and chest. He seemed to have balanced facial features and…damn, those were luscious lips. The guy certainly seemed to be in decent shape, to boot. But, none of that helped me narrow down who he was. On the contrary, it made me wonder just who the hell he was even more.

I felt his lips on mine and his fingers tracing the base of my neck once more before he pulled away. Once again, my body tried to follow him like a flower chasing sunlight.  **"Mentally count to sixty at a steady pace and, afterwards, you are free to move and to open your eyes again."**

 _Fuck._  1, 2, 3…

He was gone long before I opened my eyes. I grabbed my phone and scrolled through it, easily finding the new number listed under "My Alpha." I let out a snort and edited the name until it read "Faceless Bus Stalker."

A part of me was relieved that the Alpha hadn't claimed me immediately. When I assessed myself, I found my body to have finally calmed down. As I left the room, I realized that the scents were no longer overwhelming to me and I was no longer queasy.

I was still out of it when I sat down in my Humanities class several minutes later.

"So, you matured into an Omega and are  _already_  claimed?" Morgan snickered next to me. "That was fast. Was it a guy or a girl?"

I frowned. "Wait, claimed?" I asked. "I mean, he didn't…I-I wasn't! Not really, anyway."

"Then, why do you have his family's emblem on your neck?"

My lilac eyes widened. I immediately pulled up the camera app on my phone and reversed the camera so that I could look at myself. An emblem was indeed on the side of my neck. An African violet in a deep purple hue was in an inner circle with the sign for Capricorn above it and a rat below in a dark red. What surprised me was the Scorpio sign to the right and the dragon on the left in blue…those were  _my_ zodiac signs. The two circles were plain, unlike the flowering swirls of a finalized emblem.

Well, that explained why I hadn't been approached by any Alphas since.

The fucker had already claimed me halfway.

Have you ever felt like punching a faceless man before?


	2. 02

a/n: No, you're not seeing things. This is an official update.

::

I splashed some water on my face in the bathroom and looked at myself as I dried it with a towel. If there was one thing in the world that I didn't bother trying to fight, it was sun. I did not play with the sun. I always had a long-sleeved hoodie that could protect me from its rays and long pants. I carried a bottle of spf 30 with me at all times in the zipper pocket of my pants, which I quickly reapplied.

I didn't think much of my appearance, as I was used to the stark paleness that came with lack of color. In my early teens I tried dying my hair just for kicks, but I felt it made me look even worse, so I allowed the color to fade. I kept my hair generally short because it was wavy and could easily become unruly if left to its own devices. But, when it was no longer than 2 inches on top, it was easy to manage. While human, we didn't have any of our canine features, but my yorkie form also had similar wavy fur.

The only time my nose turned pink was when I got sick and had to wipe the skin raw. The tips of my ears and my lips were pink, but that's about it. I had no freckles or markings of any kind. All of the paleness made my eyes stand out in contrast. They weren't really lilac in hue, it had something to do with the lack of pigment in my irises and the blood vessels being visible. But, lilac was how the world perceived them. After I closed the cap of my sunblock and tucked it away, I looked back into the mirror to see a familiar set of amber eyes staring at me. I had to do a double take.

"Whoa, is that you, pink-nose?" Derrick the Doberman asked.

I turned around to look him in the eye and had to crane my neck up. I was 5'7" (170cm). Derrick, he was at least 6'3" (190cm). "You still trying to fight me?" I questioned, and he actually looked chagrined.

I almost felt a sneeze coming on, but then I realized it was just my newly adjusted Omega nose taking in his scent. Waffles, of all things, and muted. Someone was actually bonded to Derrick. Who knew?

"About that…" Derrick replied as he hunched his shoulders forward and placed his hands in his pocket, looking very much like a kid told that he had to go sit in time out and was guilty about it. "I tried to find you again for weeks to say sorry for being such a dick, but I couldn't find you. I know I say a lot of shit without thinking, but you'd think that after turning 21, I'd have learn to control that habit." He scowled. "The point is, you had every right to lash out like that and for a Beta…wait, Omega? I thought you were a Beta."

I instinctively covered my neck where my faceless stalker's emblem rested. "What's it to ya?" I retorted.

He actually chuckled. "Jeez, are you always this defensive? I have nothing against you being an Omega," he said as he headed towards one of the bathroom stalls. "Well, whether you believe me or not, I really am sorry."

I shuffled my way to the door, but shot him smirk. "Apology accepted. I wasn't any less of a dick that day. So, I'm sorry, too." I caught sight of the surprise on his face as I finally left. I think the two of us were finally seeing each other in a different light. If he weren't an Alpha and if I weren't an Omega, we could have actually been friends.

::::

Though it took me a while to bury down the traumatic events of that morning in order to concentrate on my classes, I think I did well. At least, until around lunch time. Morgan had a class during my lunch break, but Sabine easily found me and kept me company. I always ate inside to avoid the sunlight as much as possible, so it was always a good feeling that my few friends preferred to hang out with me instead of sitting outside.

"So, I was thinking of getting him those Husky brand shoes he keeps drooling over for his birthday," Sabine mused aloud.

"Oh, he'll love you for life if you go that far," I snickered. "Are you ready to actually form a bond with him?"

"Maybe," she replied with a grin. "It's still too soon to tell."

The smile on my face fell when I remembered that I didn't have that kind of choice anymore. Sabine noted it immediately and apologized.

"Shit! I'm sorry, Avion, that wasn't very thoughtful of me." She admitted.

A moment of silence washed over us both for a while before she spoke up once more.

"And you still haven't been able to figure his voice out?" Sabine asked.

I shook my head and let out a little groan. "I'm trying  _not_ to think about it too hard."

"Hey pink- crap, I never got your real name. No more name-calling from now on, I promise," Derrick called out as he approached us. Right beside him was a young woman that was about four inches taller than me, and she wasn't even wearing high heels. "This is my mate Deziray, Dez, these are…"

"Sabine and Avion," Sabine filled in. "Nice to meet you! You guys wanna sit with us?"

Derrick actually looked to Deziray as if to ask if it was okay and only sat down when she sat down. That small notion made me curious about their relationship. Didn't the majority of Alphas boss their Omegas around? And Deziray was definitely an Omega. I didn't know what her canine form was, but my nose kept telling me she was an Omega.

"Avion," Deziray tested out. "Your name's as tricky as mine."

"Yeah, you wouldn't believe how many times I've been called Avon over the years," I responded.

"Ha! Try 'Desi-rah' or 'Dezray.' I feel your pain, believe me," Dez countered.

"Derrick and Deziray…if you two ever got married, even your names sound cute together," Sabine stated. "You have that double "De" thing going."

A blush actually formed on Derrick's face, which didn't go by unnoticed by Deziray, who promptly pressed her finger into one of his pink cheeks in a gentle teasing manner. "My blushing groom-to-be. Though, marriage is still a few years away. Yeah, I gotta admit that it's gonna be fun sending out the invites with both our names."

"You two are  _waiting_ to get married?" the words were out of my mouth before I could stop them. The couple before me was just so different compared to those that I had seen before.

"Deziray's studying to become a nurse and wants to work for a few years before we get married," Derrick explained. "And I'm taking over my family's auto shop, so the first year or two after graduation will be busy for us both."

"Good for you both," I commented. "Sorry if I sound so shocked, it's just that the other Alpha-Omega couples I've seen barely even waited to graduate high school before marrying and having kids."

"I understand why they would," Deziray admitted. "Strong bonds like the ones between Alphas and Omegas can be overwhelming at times. But, I figure that if we already know we're in it for the long haul anyway, then what's the rush to have kids?"

"It's harder on the Alpha to curb the need to throw caution to the wind and mate without protection," Derrick confessed. "But, it's just primal instinct. You don't  _need_  to go bareback to form the bond and, once it's in place, then that need calms down."

"That's amazing," Sabine acknowledged. "I wish you both success and, when the time comes, I better get an invite."

"You're officially on my list," Deziray decided, flashing a smile. "Both of you."

I never had such a long conversation with a mated couple before. They left before us due to their class schedules, but I actually hoped to talk to them during lunch every day. "You know what," I told Sabine. "I think this is the first time that one of my fights actually turned out for the better."

"Hey, just because those two are more mature than we thought doesn't' mean that you should continue going around picking fights," Sabine admonished.

"It's not like I  _start_ them!" I argued. Sabine began to argue back, but I ended up tuning out her words as my senses narrowed down to one thing. The scent of dark chocolate.

I didn't know how to explain it, but the scent of an Alpha was different than the scent of real food. An Alpha's scent carried a specific presence. I stood up and looked around, desperately trying to identify the face that went with the scent. But, then it was gone. Had he walked past the table? How long had he been around?

"Hey, are you ok?" Sabine asked, concern bleeding into her voice.

That was when I realized that I was clutching the zipper of my hoodie with two trembling hands. "I-I'm fine. I just thought…"

" _Y_ _ou are not to accept any other Alpha's intentions or affection. The same goes for Betas and even other Omegas."_

But, Derrick and Deziray didn't treat me with that kind of intent or affection. I didn't break that command, not in the slightest! So, why did it feel like the Faceless Alpha wasn't pleased with me?

::::

I was tense the rest of the day. I was barely able to concentrate on my remaining classes and an anxiety began to build inside of me as I walked out to the bus stop. Though we commuted together on the way to MU, it didn't necessarily mean that we'd end up taking the same bus back. The classes were all different hours.

" _ **Don't move and keep facing forward,"**_ the command was whispered into one of my ears.

Well, shit.

I felt him tracing the marking on my neck with his finger. While it wasn't unpleasant, I was quickly becoming aggravated with the way he kept trying to be the one in control all the time. "Why are you hiding?" I continued to question him. "Why can't we talk about this like adults?"

Seeing Derrick and Deziray opened my eyes to the possibility of having an equal and mutual relationship even between an Alpha and Omega couple. If they could have that kind of balance, why couldn't I? Why couldn't  _we_?

"I'd like nothing more than for us to talk like adults," the Alpha admitted. "Especially after seeing how friendly you were with that Doberman earlier even though he had humiliated you on the first day of classes."

I frowned. "You saw all that? And what does Derrick have to do with anything?"

" _How easily you forgave him,"_ he whispered as he rested his chin on top of my hooded head and wrapped his arms around my shoulders.

I could have easily tugged them off, but as my hands lifted to take hold of his arms, they merely rested on top of them. I had to force myself to think through the haze of his scent. Forgiveness. He was talking about forgiveness. "Is there something I need to forgive  _you_  for? On top of all of these theatrics, I mean?"

Mere moments before, I was so tense and anxious. I was also afraid of what the Faceless Alpha was going to command me to do. But, his touch was gentle and almost soothing. Could he have really done something to me in the past that needed forgiving?

Instead of answering me, let out a long sigh and let me go.

" **When you get on the bus, you will not look in my direction, not even when the bus takes off."**

"So that's it, then?" I hissed. "You won't show me what you look like, but you have the audacity to half claim me with an emblem?"

"… _can I take that to mean that you weren't upset about the kiss?"_

I felt myself bristling from head to toe. I wanted to deny it adamantly. But, something in my gut urged me to be honest. I took a deep breath and folded my arms across my chest. "That's…not exactly the issue here," I grumbled.

I could all but feel his hope rising. For a moment I didn't know whether I should be relieved or annoyed about it. Why would I want him to have any kind of hope at all? What the hell was wrong with me?

"Then, am I allowed a parting kiss?"

"Parting…you're not getting on the bus?" I asked.

"I don't normally take the bus. My car was in the shop," he confessed. "A friend's dropping me off to pick it up."

"Oh."

"May I?" he all but pleaded.

I gulped hard. I was currently living my 'worst case' scenario in terms of maturing into an Omega. My body had quite easily accepted this Faceless Alpha's emblem. He was apparently someone in my past, someone that needed forgiving. And instead of facing me, he ordered me around this way and that. I had every reason not to allow him so much as a handshake. And yet…

"I mean, I guess. If you must," I heard myself answer. Either I was an idiot or my second head was trying to take over my mind.

I heard him give a happy laugh. "Then,  **keep your eyes closed.** "

I still didn't know what possessed me to agree to it. Maybe it was because he had actually  _asked_  that time and gave me the choice. Maybe it was to try to throw him off-balance. But, I had to admit that when I felt those soft lips against mine once more, I regretted nothing. The Alpha must have meant for the kiss to have been a simple one, but I took hold of his collar and kept him in place as I all but ate at his mouth. A satisfaction filled me when I felt his tongue stutter against mine before allowing me to do as I wished.

When we both pulled away, I found myself biting my lower lip. I wanted to see him. I wanted to understand. For reasons that I couldn't figure out, a part of me had already accepted him. I wanted to know why.

" **You can open your eyes, but remember not to glance my way."** The command came towards my right before I felt him walk away behind me.

I tugged on the edges of my hoodie as I hunched down over my knees.

Why couldn't I have matured into a Beta, instead?

::::

I shared a reasonably priced apartment with Morgan about twenty minutes' commute from the campus by bus. The two of us worked on the weekend and his grandfather sent him money to help with expenses once a month. Morgan was studying criminal justice and had always wanted to be a police officer like his grandad.

I received the first text message when I started to make dinner. Morgan's classes were scheduled all over the place, so he usually got home three hours after me and left one hour before me.

**Faceless Bus Stalker** **5:30PM**

_Did you get home safe?_

Yeah, why wouldn't I have?

_Just checking._

…so, did you pick up your car?

_Yeah, this auto shop's the best. Would you like for me to pick you up tomorrow? You could sleep in a little longer._

Wait, do you know where I live?

_Not the exact location._

Don't believe that for a second. How else would you know that I'd be able to "sleep a little longer?"

_Avi, my intention isn't to scare you. You don't have to say yes._

I haven't given you permission to call me Avi. I don't think anyone's ever called me Avi.

_…then, may I have permission to call you Avi?_

…I guess. If you must.

_Thanks, Avi._

It'd be nice if I knew what to call YOU. Other than Faceless Bus Stalker, that is.

_Did you seriously rename me Faceless Bus Stalker?_

Yes, and you will remain FBS until you show me your face.

_I will. I just need time._

I mean, how the hell am I even gonna get into the car if I have to keep closing my damn eyes?

_You'd just have them closed until I stand behind you. Does that mean you'd let me pick you up and drop you off?_

::::

Fuck.  _Did_ that mean that I wanted him to pick me up and drop me off? Even with the prospect of more sleep, it was still shady. Hell,  _everything_ was still shady.

::::

Let me think about it. I'll get back to you.

_As I said before, you don't have to say yes. Although, I would like nothing more than for you to say yes._

::::

Alright. Think, Avion, think.

I knew a lot of Alphas back in high school because many of them tried to mess around with me. Some were jealous of my grades. Others were struggling with being gay or had shoddy parenting. But, the point is that they tried to take their shit out on me.

There was that Akita that looked like he had swallowed dung after my project was named the best of the class. He made my life miserable in science class. But, he wasn't that much taller than me and, unless he had magically bulked up, there's no way that he was my Faceless Bus Stalker.

There was the Boxer whom I had helped during one of our History classes and then turned around and started making fun of me with everyone else. Thanks to him, I grew to really distrust alphas. But, once again, the Boxer was short and stout.

Then there was the Bernese Mountain dog, Ashur, who was as vain as vain could be. He was freakishly tall, but had a similar build to FBS. I turned him down when he asked me out quite forcefully and he became one of my more prominent bullies during high school.

And then, there was the Husky.

I felt a shudder roll through me and ended up grasping both my arms as if it would help me get warmer.

Nestor the Husky had some major issues. Best friends with Ashur, the two of them just wouldn't leave me alone. I never found out whether it was because Nestor was a homophobe or was beaten up at home and lashing out or both. But, I couldn't have been gladder when the whole lot of them finally graduated.

All four of them were Juniors when I entered my Freshman year of high school. For two whole years, they had targeted me.

Could my Faceless Bus Stalker be one of them? Could he be Ashur?

_Could he be Nestor?_

I felt another shudder run through me as I shook my head. If FBS was either one of them, I wouldn't hesitate to move out of the country and leave his ass behind, unfinished bond or not.


	3. 03

" _ **Stop running!"**_

_I was able to run a few more yards before the Alpha command set in. Even then, I speed-walked across the track, partially limping from where I fell on my hip after having slipped on one of the bleachers earlier._

_I had lost one of my shoes, so my sock was getting all muddy and wet. It hadn't stopped raining, but I could still feel the burn of concealed UV rays on my exposed skin._

" _ **Stop. Moving."**_ _came another low growl of an Alpha command._

_My steps slowed to an enforced stop. As a Beta, I could delay an Alpha command or bend it if it wasn't phrased properly. But, in the end, I had to submit to it._

_Nestor was being nastier than usual that evening. The team had lost the game. He had bruises in odd places. And, for some reason, Ashur was all for inciting him even further…more so than usual._

_I could tell that Nestor just wanted an outlet. Ashur, on the other hand, enjoyed seeing me like this._

_The two of them had commanded me to wear a cheerleader's uniform and then forced me to run up and down the bleachers in the pouring rain. After that first painful fall, I realized that I had to find a way to escape. But, they went and chased after me._

" _Please," I pleaded, feeling exhausted by that point. "Please, just let me go…"_

_A sadistic smile formed on Ashur's lovely face. Such gorgeous looks were wasted on an asshole like him. "Hear that, Nes? He wants to run off. Should we let him?"_

" _No." The tone of Nestor's voice was concerning. It lacked any emotion. He reached out one of his thick, muscled arms, it was to roughly clutch the front of my cheerleader top, lifting me almost a foot off the ground._

" _Nestor..." I tried once again, but he slammed me down into the ground so hard that my world erupted in pain. I was a Sophomore. I had barely turned 15. But, it wasn't until that day that I realized just how fragile my body could be._

_Later on, I had been told that my ribs had been broken in the process. "Wh-why…" I wheezed, finding it excruciating to breathe as I gazed up at the husky's emotionless face._

" _ **THAT'S ENOUGH!"**_ _another voice called out just as I began to black out._

::::

I gasped loudly as I sat up in bed, my chest heaving as my racing heart finally began to settle down. As I took deep breaths and raked both my hands through my hair, I was absolutely certain of one thing.

My Faceless Bus Stalker was most definitely  _not_  Nestor or Ashur. Though the voice that I heard before blacking out was muffled in my memory, it had a similar ring to the sound of FBS's voice.

Could  _that_ have been him?

It had to be him, right?

As I took another shaky breath, I reached for my phone. I'd just about had it with all the secrecy. If he was serious about this, he needed to _show_  me. I stared at the time. 6AM. I had set the alarm for later in order to try to sleep in. So much for that. I sent FBS a text.

::::

Pick me the fuck up.

_…is everything ok?_

Pick me up and show yourself. I'm done with these hiding games.

_…_

::::

I could tell there was a moment where he was typing and erasing, typing and erasing some more. In a fit of frustration, I beat him to the punch.

::::

Lexus!

::::

Complete and utter silence.

::::

Lexus. You're Lexus, aren't you?

Just pick me up. We need to talk.

::::

Another moment of silence, and then…

::::

_Yes. Alright, I will._

I felt my heart skip a beat when I read those words. He didn't deny it. He didn't even deny it. FBS was Lexus. My Faceless Bus Stalker Alpha…was  _Lexus._

My mind was blown as emotion after emotion fought for dominance inside me.

Relief…despite all of the Alphas that caused me hell during high school, Lexus hadn't been one of them. The blue German Shepherd had transferred in halfway into his Senior year and was part of the same team as Nestor and Ashur, but he never participated in their treatment of me and would break it up whenever things got too far.

Regret…Lexus had been the one to call the ambulance that night that Nestor nearly broke me. I had been so sick and so scared of Nestor and Ashur that just seeing him in the same  _uniform_  as them caused me to reflexively push him away after he had spent hours waiting for me to wake up in the hospital bed. Had I been less frightened, we might have become friends.

Anger…he knew better than anyone else how I hated to be commanded to do  _anything_ and yet that was the first thing he did when we crossed paths again!

Fear…this was really happening. I was an Omega. An Alpha was legitimately claiming me. I was someone's partner; someone's future mate.

And yet, the fact that it was Lexus didn't disgust me. In fact, it  _intrigued_  me. In spite of everything, I really wanted to take a good look at him. I wanted to see how he had grown and changed both physically and mentally.

A part of me still wanted to punch him in the face. Another part of me wanted to kiss the daylights out of him.

As I got ready that morning, I thought of a compromise.

::::

An hour later, I was all but shoving Morgan out of the door of our shared apartment. He had a class that started at the crack of dawn, so he took a different bus to get to his class on time. The whole time we were eating breakfast, he knew that I was hatching something and wanted to stick around to see it. But, he finally relented when I promised to give him the details later.

I was already standing in front of the door when a royal blue Toyota Prius pulled up in the parking space right in front of me. Lexus didn't say a word as he stepped out of the car and walked towards me. He looked about as nervous as I felt, though he wore it much better.

He hadn't grown any taller than when I last saw him, but he was still quite tall at about 6 feet (183cm). He had put on a bit more muscle than when he was in high school, without a doubt. His skin tone was as olive-hued as I remembered. His face and jawline seemed to have changed a bit. He looked older, more mature. His black hair was in a spiky, modern undercut. But, it was his eyes that drew me in. A cerulean blue around the pupils and outer ring of the iris, but a powder blue on the inside.

I took a sharp inhale of breath and then closed the distance between us, tugging him down into a vicious kiss. His tongue was as decadent as a piece of dark chocolate melting in your mouth. I didn't allow him any control of the kiss. And, as I pulled away, I bit his lower lip sharply and then slapped him hard enough to sting on his right butt cheek.

"Whoa- _Ow_!" He hissed as he rubbed his backside.

"Be grateful that it wasn't a punch to the face," I taunted. If he hadn't faced me like he just did, I would have definitely punched him. "Consider it retribution for all of your previous antics."

"Are we even now, then?" He asked, still slightly rubbing his bottom.

"Yeah, we can call it even," I responded cheekily as I opened the passenger side of the car and sat down. "For now."

I expected the Alpha to slip into the driver's side so we could go to class, but he opened my door. Before I could ask him what he was doing, he ducked down to kiss me. That time, I let him have his way. The kiss was slow, soft, and sensual. Unlike the punishing kiss I had given him earlier, the kiss he gave me made me feel dizzy with need.

" _Lex,"_ I gasped when he pulled away. I didn't recognize the sound of my voice. But, by the heat that flashed briefly in his eyes, I knew that it had really affected him.

When he got into the driver's side, my inner canine was all but whimpering at me to go hump the first pillow I could find, preferably the one we usually kept hidden away in our room for that very purpose. I kept my gaze fixated out the window to try to push that feeling down. How ironic that, when I finally had the freedom to gaze openly at Lexus, I chose to  _avoid_  looking at him.

Thanks a-fucking-lot, Omega hormones.

::::

In the ten minutes it took to get to campus, the two of us talked about classes and our general plans. I told him how I wanted to be a history scholar and he told me how he wanted to be a drama scholar. The fact that he preferred the drama department over athletics was news to me. It wasn't that I doubted his resolve. I just remembered how much he used to enjoy sports in high school.

I also had to apologize to all of my previous friends that entered into extreme relationships. Though I wasn't exactly smitten with the blue German Shepherd, he asked if he could walk me to my first class of the day and out of my last class of the day and I said yes. I even allowed him to hold my hand and to give me a parting peck on the lips.

Yes, it was all still quite sickening...but, now it was the kind of "sickening" I could handle. The rumor mill, however, was an entirely different beast as I found out a few hours later.

"Avion!" Sabine called out as she ran right over to me and stopped to catch her breath. "I heard...your...Alpha...drama department."

How did the news spread so freaking fast? "Y-Yeah. My mystery Alpha's really Lexus from the drama department," I affirmed.

Her green eyes were practically sparkling. "What a hunk!" she squealed. "Does Morgan know?"

"Not yet," I admitted, feeling a bit sheepish knowing that he probably heard it as a rumor first. "He's probably gonna give me an earful later."

"Why didn't you tell him first?" She questioned, as if indignant for his sake.

"Because I had no clue what I was doing until I was actually doing it, that's why," I tried to explain with zero eloquence.

"Well, then I'm glad I'm not you right now," she snickered.

"Gee, thanks."

::::

Sure enough, Morgan had the most petulant look on his face...like a child whose favorite show had been recorded over or deleted. It took all my will not to laugh at the sight.

"Hey, I did promise you all of the details," I offered as an olive branch.

"Then, spill already!" Morgan whined. " _Lexus?_  Like Lexus, the guy who transferred in during our second half of Sophomore year in high school? Mr. I'm-so-good-at-all-these-sports, even  _volleyball_?"

"Yeah, that'd be the one."

"How the heck did this happen?"

"I'm still wondering the same!"

"...so he's Mr. Dark Chocolate?"

"Yep."

"Mr. Alpha Scaredy Pants?"

"Mm-hmm."

"The Faceless Bus Stalker?"

"My FBS, indeed."

" _Holy shit!"_

"My sentiments exactly, bestie," I concluded.

After I told him a few more details about my nightmare and how I used it to help recognize his voice, outing Lexus in the process, Morgan finally stopped pouting about having heard about it through the rumor mill. I told him of my concerns and how I was still wary of everything having to do with the Alpha- Omega dynamic. But, that he might want to take his time getting back to the apartment just in case I decided to jump Lex's bones that night.

::::

Lunch time was a bit nerve-wracking. Sabine was practically glued to my side in the hope that Lexus would make himself known and sit with us. She wasn't disappointed. Lex found us easily and sat down right next to me. Sabine quickly changed seats so that she could sit at his other side and began to interrogate him.

Thankfully, Derrick and Deziray joined us, as well. They served as a decent enough distraction to Sabine so that I was able to talk to Lexus for a bit, as well.

"Morgan nearly had a fit because I didn't tell him before rumors started running amok," I relayed.

"Sorry to hear that," Lexus replied.

"To be fair, I still wasn't sure about all this until you came out of the car and faced me," I admitted. "No antics, no commands. Just you."

A smile lit up his face. "I'm more grateful for this chance than you know," he confessed. "Thanks for taking the plunge with me."

"Oh, I wouldn't call it a "plunge" just yet, but I think I get what you mean," I acknowledged. Before I changed the subject to a more serious matter, I urged Lexus to take a walk with me and said goodbye to my lunch buddies.

We ducked into an empty hallway so I wouldn't be under the sun and I looked up at him. "Lex...you, more than most, know about my past with...with Nestor and Ashur."

A slight frown formed on his face and he nodded.

"I know that it's just the way things are, Alpha commands have always been used in the past for pack safety," I began. "But, can you put yourself in my shoes for a moment? How would  _you_ feel if you had no choice but to obey, no matter  _what_ the command is?"

I found myself staring down at the ground. But, he took my face into his hands and lifted it up until I was looking into his eyes.

"Avi, I swear to you that I will never use an Alpha command on you or  _anyone_ else from this point onwards," he vowed.

I felt strange tears brimming in my eyes. He had such kind intentions. But, I didn't believe it for one second. It was in an Alpha's nature to command others in dire situations, just as it was in mine to rebel against them. But, we could try.

"If you do your best to  _try_ to keep that promise," I added. "Then I also promise to try to follow your lead and be obedient, within reason."

He bent down as if to kiss me, but stopped before closing the distance, as if to give me the choice. I didn't hesitate to meet him the rest of the way. Physical intimacy was not the problem. The attraction between us could have existed beneath the surface ever since we were both in high school. Whether we could take on one another's baggage was another issue entirely.

The next thing I knew, I was up against the wall with my legs wrapped around his waist and our tongues were trying to memorize the shape of each other's mouths. My body quickly reminded me how badly it wanted to complete our bond by making me hard as fuck at the same time as creating that odd secretion once again, as if my lower half were getting ready to be speared all by itself.

I felt Lexus chuckling against my mouth when I began to squirm and grind against him. He unfortunately pulled away despite my desperate keening.

"Yeah, me too," he agreed, pressing his own hardness against me. "I want you just as bad, believe me. But..."

The sound of the hallway door opening startled me and I all but clung to Lex's form.

"...we're still on campus," he concluded as students started to walk past us both. He set me back onto my feet with care. "I'd be more than willing to continue where we left off whenever you want."

"Tonight at 5:30 in my room," I suggested. "Morgan doesn't get back til 8:30."

"Then, expect to have me 5:30."

Oh, I certainly intended to.


	4. 04

Though my concentration was much better with the anxiety of my Alpha partner's identity resolved, my mind was still divided between my classes and our incomplete bond. All it took was some grounding, according to what Derrick and Deziray said the day before. Then, my body would stop acting as if it were in some kind of perpetual heat. At least, that's what I hoped.

I figured I'd deal with the fact that Lexus and I knew next to nothing about each other later. I mean, yeah he wasn't as much of a dick as other Alphas, but what was his family like? Why did he quit sports? What was the deal with being in the drama department? And since when did he want to be a scholar?

My family? My mother had given birth to me on an airplane and had raised me as if I had all the rights of an Alpha even though I was only a Beta. I was fairly neutral in terms of sports. I enjoyed playing or watching them every now and then, but I wasn't diehard. I wanted to become a History scholar because real stories of the past fascinated me and there weren't many good history scholars around.

It was through studying history that I realized just how unorthodox my mom had been to have raised me the way she did. Did I blame her? Hell no. I was going to fight for what I felt was right for the rest of my life.

The point was that I could answer any questions about myself without thinking it over twice. Lexus, on the other hand, I knew next to nothing about. Little did I know that our post-coital conversations were going to be quite interesting, to say the least.

::::

When Lex and I walked…ok, more like sped-walked to the car, I could have sworn that I felt someone glaring daggers at us. If what Sabine said earlier was true, then apparently, many people had been hoping to bag Lexus as a partner. So, it was understandable if there were waves of envy in the air. But, why did some of those "waves" make me feel so unsettled?

I paused at the door of the Prius and glanced around, almost feeling paranoid. Though Lex's family emblem kept me safe from any Alpha commands of anyone that was younger than him, I was still susceptible to any Alphas that were his age and older. It had to do with the fact that the bond was still incomplete.

"Did you forget something in class?" Lexus asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"No, just thought I saw something," I admitted as I finally sat down in the passenger seat.

The odd feeling seeped away the closer we got to the apartment that I shared with Morgan. I stole glances at Lexus and began to think of far better things...like the fact that the two of us were gonna be alone. And how badly I wanted to kiss him again.

As soon as we entered through the door, all thinking ceased to exist. I barely remembered to make sure we took our shoes off at the entrance before Morgan had a fit. Then, I dragged Lexus into a bathroom that was way too small to do much of anything. But, at least the shower itself was spacious enough for two. It was a walk-in with no tub.

"Wait, are we really doing this?" Lexus asked, and I could have sworn I heard a touch of trepidation in his voice.

I had to actually fight my body's feverish heat to think. If I told him the first words that came to mind, "Please enter me so my Omega-ness can finally have some peace," it would have surely killed the mood before it even kicked off.

I mean, it's not like I didn't understand his hesitation. He had told me before that he was worried about what parts were really me and what parts were my Omega instinct. But, there had to be a way I could get through to him that, even through my fucked up state, I really did want him.

I licked my lips briefly as I chose my words. "I know we still have a lot to learn about each other," I admitted. "I promise that the reason I want us to complete our bond is  _not_ to cut corners, but to help calm this need down enough so that we  _can_ focus on learning about each other. Ya get what I mean?"

"You really think it will calm the need down?" Lexus wondered aloud.

As much as I wished I could read him through those amazing blue eyes of his, we weren't anywhere near that level of intimacy and trust yet. "From what I've heard, yeah, I think so," I affirmed.

Though he was clearly still a bit hesitant, he began to take off his clothes. The scent of dark chocolate became stronger. I nearly jizzed right in my boxers at the sight of all that olive skin and those soft brown nipples. Shit, was I drooling? Get a hold of yourself, Avion!

When he was completely exposed, my gaze raked him from head to toe. He was freaking beautiful. We were close to the same size in terms of privates, but I always knew mine had always been a bit big for my petite frame. On him, it just looked proportional and normal. If I weren't so eager to have him inside me, I'd have even been a bit jealous.

My disrobing wasn't nearly as patient or remotely sexy. I knew that I very much resembled an eager, virginal teenager all tangled up in the clothes I'm trying to get rid of. But, you know what? I  _am_ a flippin' eager, virginal teenager struggling to take his clothes off. So, stop it with the judging.

When I was finally able to toss my last sock off, I noticed that Lexus definitely didn't seem to care about my lack of finesse.

" _Gorgeous,"_ he whispered.

"I should be saying that about  _you_ ," I countered with a smirk.

Just as I slid the shower door open, I saw him pause out of the corner of my eye.

"Wait, do you have protection?" He asked and then let out a curse. "Damn, I think I left mine in the car."

I raised an eyebrow. "How many people have you been with, Lexus?" I questioned.

A deep blush actually formed on his face. Wow, really?

"No one. At least, not to the point of penetration or oral," he confessed.

"Ah, that'd be " _zero_ " then. Same here," I tossed over my shoulder as I turned on the water to lukewarm. I didn't bother telling him about my 'special pillow,' but inanimate objects did not count. "So, you're not going anywhere other than inside this shower. Right. Now." I turned to look him in the eyes. "Is that alright with you?"

Instead of answering, he followed me in and slid the door closed.

And, just like that, all of my senses narrowed down to the warmth radiating from Lex's skin and his particularly decadent scent. I didn't realize I was making a low, rumbling sound until I saw him shiver. I barely felt the spray of the water on my back as I placed my hands on his shoulders and felt his hands on my back. My inner canine was wagging his tail like crazy. I ignored him and tugged Lexus into the water.

Heated kisses were exchanged. The more that we touched, bit, and kissed, the more aroused we became. I felt his hand sliding from the back of my neck, up the back of my head and back as his tongue taunted my own. I forgot where we were. I was only reminded of the water whenever a particularly sharp spray flicked my chest. When we pulled away, it was to bite and lick other areas of our bodies. I was so fucking hard it was almost embarrassing. But, then I would brush against his hardness and I was assured that we were both in the same state.

I don't know where I got the courage, but at one point, I was on my knees taking half of his shaft in my mouth as my hands stroked the base and held the flesh in place. I felt his hand tentatively on the top of my head, as if he was afraid to restrict me. As I moved forward and back, it almost felt as if his hand was petting me.

Damn, but that felt good, too.

Then, his hand really did clutch the back of my head and I felt him give a thrust or two as if he just couldn't control himself. I had to remember to tell him to do that more often, because when our movements met, it felt freaking amazing to me.

He urged me back to my feet for some more kisses. When he realized that I was mindlessly stroking myself, he tugged my hand aside and began to stroke us both with his hands. The raspiest gasps could be heard, and I realized that most of them were mine.

" _Lex, please,"_ I urged the Alpha as I tried to voice my needs. "I just…it's not enough…"

Lexus didn't hesitate to lift me and pin me against the shower wall. The tiles were cold against my back, but it was just another added sensation to the searing heat that overcame all of my senses. And then, I heard him groan at the same time as I gasped while he slid inside me in one steady motion.

I finally understood what the weird, slippery substance did. It made it damn easy for an Alpha to bury himself into an Omega with minimal pain involved. I personally didn't feel pain as much as a slight burning sensation due to the friction. I never had anything other than fingers in that part of my body, so everything was new to me.

I dropped my head back, nearly bashing the back of it against the tile as I felt something radiating from inside my chest and outward. I never felt anything like  _that_  whenever I had my 'special pillow' time. I could only assume that it was an Omega thing.

The second time that Lexus thrusted inside, I let out the most lust-laden moan ever. It was almost ridiculous how good it felt. If that was also due to that slippery substance, then I was starting to gain an appreciation for it.

I heard Lexus hissing as he moved, as if he was trying his best to concentrate. Could he have been affected, too? Just what was  _in_ that slippery stuff?

His groans only served to incite me further. Between the sounds he made, his movements, and the heat we generated, I knew I wasn't going to last.

He shifted in a way that allowed him to lean down enough to reach my mouth and he began to kiss me as he slowed down his rocking.

I blew my load then and there.

He let out a curse as he felt it and I worried that he'd end up dropping me. But, he just kept going. His lips attached to my neck and he picked the pace back up.

My arms clutched onto his back and I felt another sharp heat along the emblem on my neck as he raked it with his teeth.

" _Avi!"_

The way he called out 'Avi' was like music to my ears. He had earned the right to call me by that nickname. Absolutely.

I remembered releasing for a second time when I felt the heat of his seed filling me, and I remembered feeling as if my neck was being burned by a sharp ray of sunlight before blacking out.

::::

When I came to, I remembered thinking that the arm draped around me and the warmth against my back were making me feel a bit aroused. Then, I felt Lex's finger tracing my neck.

 _I wonder what those flowers are. Damn. I think I really overdid it,_ I could have sworn I heard Lexus say as I started to regain my senses.  _I should have researched making love to Omegas further. God, I hope he's ok._

I frowned and shifted into a sitting position only to catch sight of my 'special pillow' at the foot of my bed, totally exposed.

" _Fuck!"_  I hissed as the soreness in my backside made itself known when I tried to dive for it.

"Avi!" Lexus called out. "Are you alright? Need me to take you to the hospital?"  _Fuck. I'm so sorry, my little dragon._

My little dragon? What the hell was that? The opposite of a 'my little pony?' Instead of questioning Lex's tastes in pet names, I focused on my mission to hide my 'special pillow' before the Alpha realized what it was.

_Oh, he's worried about that little pillow that's drenched in his scent. Is he really that embarrassed about it? I think it's kinda cute._

At that point, I was totally confused. Was I hearing things? Was my mind playing games with me? I slowly turned to look into Lex's concerned face.

_He looks scared. Damn, I really did overdo it._

My eyes widened. It was most definitely Lexus's voice I was hearing. But, the words weren't coming out of his mouth. How did I know? His luscious lips weren't moving, that's why!

"Oh, fuck!" I gasped.

I saw Lex's frown furrow even further.  _Is he balking at our having had sex? Was I right to think it was only his Omega instincts? I knew we shouldn't have gone so fast!_

"Y-you saw my pillow…" I stated lamely. I couldn't let him think that I was frightened of our first time together, because that couldn't be further from the truth. That was if I was really hearing what he was thinking in the first place. For all I knew, I could be losing my mind.

Relief flooded his features.  _He's just embarrassed. Thank goodness._ "How are you feeling?" He asked aloud. "Has the need settled down a bit? It has for me."

I took a moment to assess myself. "Yeah, I-I think it's finally settled," I responded. "Not that I don't want to jump your bones again, cause I totally do! It's just not as overpowering as before."

"Should I get going before Morgan gets back?" He asked hesitantly.

"Don't you want to hang out for a bit?" I heard myself asking.

The smile that formed on his face made me feel warm inside.

_He wants me to stay? I think we're gonna be ok._

For being such an enthusiast of history, I had only glossed over things about Omegas in the past. I had stupidly felt that if I didn't focus on those things enough that I wouldn't mature  _into_ an Omega. I was totally kicking myself about now as I made a mental note to talk to Deziray as soon as possible about Omega stuff. And I mean  _pronto._


	5. 05

My closet was full of clothing of all sizes. Sometimes I felt like wearing close-fitting clothes and other times I felt like wearing baggy, large, and comfortable clothes. So, it wasn’t that hard for me to find a pair of gym shorts (not those super tiny ones with slits on the side, long ones that almost came down to the knees and had a drawstring) and large shirt for Lexus to wear. When it came to boxers, I knew there was no way he’d fit into mine, so he chose to go commando. How difficult it was for me to stop thinking about that and to keep from molesting him.

When we were both in clean, comfortable clothing, I hid my ‘special pillow’ somewhere in the corner of my closet and the two of us sat down next to each other on the couch of the living room. No real cuddling was involved, since I guess we both didn’t want to spark up another rutting session. But, as we talked we threaded our fingers through each other’s hands and gave each other little touches. It was a way to kind of ground us without giving Morgan a porn show when he got back, which would be soon.

“So, about that pillow…” Lexus teased.

I scrunched up my nose. “Let’s not talk about my special pillow. My canine form needed an outlet, too,” I defended.

 _Outlet?_ “Do you think of _me_ as an outlet?” Lex asked.

“Shit,” I hissed. I was still hearing his thoughts every now and then, or what I perceived to be his thoughts. I knew that I wasn’t catching _all_ of them, but it still felt quite intrusive. “No, I didn’t mean it that way. I need to stop blurting things out without thinking.”

He gave me another one of his sweet smiles. I wanted to kiss him, but I forced that urge down. “Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve seen your canine form yet.”

“Easily arranged,” He said as he let my hand go and sat with his legs crossed on his side of the couch.

The shift was seamless. But, then again, he had three more years of practice than I did. His entire body became the same hue as his hair and then shrank and changed until a blue German Shepherd sat in his place. He was easily three times bigger than my canine form, if not four. Though the fur was definitely black, it had a slight shade of soft blue mixed in that made it look a bit lighter than just a harsh and solid black. His blue eyes couldn’t have stood out more in his canine form.

I wrapped my arms around him and nuzzled his fur, my fingers gently scratching him in different areas. I had fought larger dogs many times in my life. My tiny canine form usually came out of those fights in worse shape than the Alphas. But, the Alpha in front of me was soft and warm. He didn’t radiate an ounce of intimidation.

_He smells so good. I don’t want him to stop petting and scratching me. Would he allow me to lick him?_

…and, of course, the reason I didn’t find him intimidating could be because I could hear some of his thoughts.

“Give me a sec,” I said as I got off the couch and sat down on the floor. Though my transition wasn’t as smooth as Lex’s, I allowed the change to take over until I was looking up at him from a much, _much_ lower line of vision.

Lexus immediately hopped off the couch and began to do what I call the “happy dance.” The movements that our canine forms did whenever we were ecstatically excited about something in front of us. He leaned down on his forelegs to look at me, his rump high in the air and his tail wagging. Then, he quickly trotted around me as if to view me at all angles. He turned around in place a few times before pressing his nose to my side in affection and I couldn’t help but roll onto my back to offer him my belly.

Lexus let out a bark of joy. _He trusted me with his underside! I’ve never seen this side of him. Just look at him!_

I tilted my head slightly to keep him in my line of vision even though I knew it would make me look like a curved croissant on the ground.

...and that’s how Morgan found us.

“ _Wow_ , Avion,” Morgan teased. “If that’s your idea of ‘jumping his bones,’ I don’t think you’re doing it quite right.”

I rolled back onto my feet and shifted back. Anything that touched our skin merely shifted along with us without any repercussions. It had something to do with evolution and adaptation. Our bodies eventually evolved to treat clothes as a second skin and it allowed us to shift back and forth without much difficulty. When we first learned how to shift as pups, the hard part was figuring out how to shift with _accessories_. May times, objects like sunglasses, necklaces, watches, and belts were left unchanged and on the ground until we learned how to treat accessories like extensions of our bodies, as well.

I shook my head as I rose to my feet just as Lexus began to shift back. “Morgan, I know you know who Lex is, but I’m officially introducing him to you as my bonded Alpha and mate,” I announced. “Lexus, I know _you_ know who Morgan is, but I’m officially introducing him to you as my best friend and brother-from-another-mother.”

I felt a strange warmth when I saw the two of them shaking hands amiably only to feel a little disgusted with myself afterward. Really? I was getting all sappy because my bestie and my unexpected-partner seemed to get along? The worst part was that it wasn’t even an Omega thing, they were my real, genuine feelings.

You know what? I may have been a sap deep inside, but I sure as hell wasn’t gonna show it.

I cleared my throat. “Well, since Morgan’s back, that means it’s getting pretty late. Let me go get your bag of clothes and I’ll walk you out to your car,” I suggested.

I tried not to snicker at the look on my friend’s face when he began to analyze the clothes I let Lexus borrow.

A few moments later, Lexus and I were practically making outside in front of the apartment door. It wasn’t the kind of parting kiss I _thought_ I was gonna give him. Once I felt those soft lips against mine, I couldn’t help but want to all but devour him. If he hadn’t found the will to pull away, we might have ended up giving Morgan a show through the peephole.

The only reason I knew that Mor had been watching was because he was literally on the other side of the door when I opened it again to get inside.  By the look in his light brown eyes, he wasn’t going to let me live any of it down.

Morgan’s grin couldn’t have been more wide or mischievous as he tossed himself onto the couch on his back dramatically. _“Oh Lexus,”_ he teased. “You know that I am the most adorable Yorkie in the world, just look at my soft white tummy and fall in love with it!”

I grabbed one of the cushions from the recliner and thwacked him with it across the shoulder just as he curled away. “You’re just jealous I ended up with a partner first. Man, does that feel so weird to say,” I countered before slumping down next to him on the couch with a sigh. “You _shouldn’t_ be jealous of me at all. I’d have preferred to have gotten to know him first, like you and Sabine. I downright _dreamed_ about courting someone or being courted by someone that way.”

“Hey, I mean, I admit the route you guys are going is a bit out of order,” Morgan countered. “But, you’ll still grow into the relationship. Lexus seems like a decent enough Alpha to compromise.”

“Yeah? Maybe the one that needs to learn to compromise is me,” I pointed out. “Mor there’s something I gotta tell ya, but I’m afraid to even say it out loud.”

I could see the chocolate Lab tense up at the sound of my voice. “Afraid to tell _me_? But, we’re besties!”

 I let out a snort. “You might change your opinion after what I have to say.” I responded. “Morgan, I…I think that I’m able to _hear_ some of Lex’s thoughts. Like in my mind, as if he were saying the words out loud.”

“…” Morgan was silent for a bit. “Dude, I know there was that one time that we skipped one of the annual sex-ed classes. But, I don’t ever remember anything that said that Omegas could read minds. Can you read mine? What am I thinking of right now?”

I shook my head. “No, I can’t. So far, it’s just Lexus’s thoughts.”

“Oh, you weren’t missing out on much, then,” Morgan admitted. “I was just thinking about you letting me pet your Yorkie form.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re so silly. As if you can’t just ask me that,” I added as I shifted into my canine form and laid down next to him.

“Jeez, nothing about you is ever simple, is it?” Morgan mused aloud as he absentmindedly began to pet my head and back. “I don’t know if I’m feeling it secondhand cause we’re practically brothers, but now you’ve got _me_ worrying.”

I didn’t respond since he wouldn’t have been able to understand my words while we were in two different forms. But I did let out a low whine and licked his fingers as if to apologize.

“Naw, man,” he replied. “It’s not your fault.”

The way that Morgan didn’t so much as doubt me and was even sympathetic of my recent development gave me a comfort I couldn’t really describe. The two of us had met at the bus stop our first year of high school. He introduced himself, eager to make a friend after having recently moved into the area. Morgan hadn’t given me any odd looks and hadn’t stared openly at my rare albinism-related features. Though we were another study in contrast, since his skin tone was a rich, deep brown, we became fast friends. I knew that I was very lucky to have him in my life.

::::

The following morning played out much like the day before. The only difference was that I felt hyper-aware of being watched. My concern over the new mind-reading-Omega-development, however, kept me more focused on finding answers than worrying about who envied us. During lunch, I asked to talk to Deziray alone and made it clear to Derrick that it was about Omega troubles so that he wouldn’t feel territorial about it. To my surprise, the Doberman was ok with it before I had even mentioned anything about Omega troubles.

“Looks like you completed your bond with Lexus,” Deziray noted as she pointed to the emblem on my neck.

The two plain circles had been replaced with wreaths of a flower that took me forever to find on the internet. It was apparently called a “bleeding-heart glory bower,” and its appearance just added to the insanity that was the emblem on my neck. I waved a hand as if to say that I wasn’t there to talk about that.

“Yeah, that’s not the issue,” I explained, my voice falling to a whisper despite the two of us being alone in the hallway. “Dez, do you… _have you ever been able to read Derrick’s mind_?”

“You mean like reading his movements and eyes?” She asked.

“No, as in…” I trailed off when I realized that she didn’t know what I meant. Nothing like that seemed to have happened to her through her bond. “Nevermind. Thanks anyway.”

“Is there something wrong?” She asked as she placed a hand on my shoulder in concern.

In spite of the situation, it felt kinda nice that she cared enough to be worried about me. I gave her a rueful smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll figure it out.”

::::

For the rest of my lunch break, I was once again on the internet researching for any Omega cases like mine. When I received no results, I knew that I had to dig deeper. I accessed the library app and jotted down the location of all the older books with information regarding Omegas.

The very first book I cracked open made heat rise to my face. The book was practically an ancient manual on how to pleasure an Omega and how many times an Omega could be essentially fucked raw before it began to really hurt. The details were slightly different in terms of female and male Omegas, but they were still quite lurid. Apparently, all Omegas were able to create that slippery substance and it did, indeed increase the pleasure of both parties in the process.

The second book spoke of the different wars that had broken out between countries and how an imbalance came out of the wars in which more Alphas and Betas survived than Omegas. Small Civil battles occurred between towns over the Omegas that remained. The more I read, the angrier I became. Omegas seemed to always end up with the short end of the stick throughout history.

I found two books with similar information as the first two. But, then I found another book that looked promising. It seemed to be a female Omega’s memoir that had been translated over from Spanish to English. I flipped through the chapters and stopped when some of her words stood out to me. ‘Telepathic Omega.’

::::

**_ Marlena Centeno – Memoir of an Omega _ **

The first time I understood I was not the only Telepathic Omega in the land was when I came across two others that were just like me. One was a Beta; the other an Omega. They, too, claimed that they were able to discern the thoughts of their Alphas. My personal experience was certainly the worst of the three. My Alpha was well into his fourth round with me when I started to hear his most intimate thoughts. They were so exaggerated that I laughed. The randy Rottweiler’s inner encouragements to himself were obviously not something other people were meant to hear. When I laughed, his confidence waned and he flagged. I had to encourage him for days to try again. That was when we learned that, if he put his mind to it, he could conceal his thoughts from me. His thoughts only came through when his guard was down. I admit that I felt sad whenever he willingly kept his thoughts hidden from me…

::::

I stopped reading. I was relieved that I wasn’t the only Omega who had such a “gift” after forming a bond. But, the fact that I was able to do such a thing at all was still shocking. A burning in my chest was a direct reaction to the guilt I felt for not having told Lexus about it. Though I hadn’t exactly lied to his face, it was still a lie by omission. I vowed to tell him after classes. After rushing about to put the other books back where I had found them, I checked out Marlena’s Memoir from the library and headed to my next class.

::::

Morgan found me reading the memoirs in Humanities class and had to shove my shoulder when the scholar walked in. I had been so engrossed reading that I didn’t realize class was about to start. It was hard to focus when all I wanted to do was learn more about Omega Telepathy. It was a wonder that I was able to keep up with my assignments at all that quarter.  

For the last few classes of the day, I was careful to stop reading when the scholars began their lectures. If Lexus hadn’t been standing in the hallway waiting for me, I’d have pulled the book back out to continue my research. I took a deep breath as I stepped out to meet him. A frown formed on his face as I took his offered hand.

“Everything ok?” He asked. _Did something happen? He looks like he has the weight of the world on his shoulders._

I fought the tears that suddenly brimmed my eyes. ‘ _His thoughts only came through when his guard was down…’_ The book had read. Did that mean that Lexus had his guard low around me? Did he trust me that much?

_He’s close by. I caught his scent down the hallway. Did Avi catch sight of him?_

Wait, who was Lex talking- er, _thinking_ about? I saw him stiffen and glance behind me as if surveying the area. Was someone really targeting us?

“Lex, has someone been following us?” I prompted.

He hesitated for a moment. _If he’s asking, that means that he hasn’t seen him. Thank goodness._ “Not that I know of. Come, I’ll take you to your apartment.”  

I allowed him to lead us out to the parking lot. As of mere moments ago, I was ready to tell him about my newly gifted telepathy. After hearing how his thoughts directly contradicted his words, I chose to keep the news to myself.

For now.

::::

When we got to the apartment, I urged him inside. I wanted to really grill him for information about the stalker that he clearly seemed to know about. But, he said he couldn’t stay long and had to go see his father about something.

Damn it.

Since we didn’t have enough time to talk, our bodies decided to make use of the little time we did have. I somehow ended up seated on the kitchen counter with him grinding against me. I felt a sharp heat against my neck, the emblem making itself known.

I get it, I get it, I mentally grumbled as I quickly unzipped my pants and kicked them off. Our bond wanted us to rut now, talk later. Lexus seemed to have also gotten the memo, because he tugged his pants down enough to expose himself.

The heat in our eyes could have lit a campfire as I leaned back on the counter and spread my legs wider. Lexus took hold of my thighs just above the knees and, the next thing I knew, I was tugged forward and I dropped my upper half down until my back was lying flat against the counter. I tilted my head slightly to look at him as I stroked myself. The slight curve of my body made me think briefly of when I had offered him my belly in my canine form.

Lexus seemed to have similar thoughts. _Fuck. He dropped onto his back for me, just like before._ He relayed as he lifted one of my legs over his shoulder and made his way inside me. _So beautiful._

In spite of the tender words, the way he thrusted into my depths wasn’t gentle. His hips snapped with a rhythmic force as if he were trying to spear me right through. Pleasure built up inside me at a frightening speed. The moans coming out of my mouth were shameless. At one point, I let go of my shaft (which I had been stroking mindlessly) and took hold of the edge of the counter with both hands.  

Lex braced both his hands on either side of me as he began to rock faster and sporadically. I drank in the sight of him leaning over me, lifting one of my hands to slide up the side of his face. He turned slightly to press a quick kiss to my wrist, never slowing down his movements. I then raked my nails through the soft hairs of his undercut as my fingers dug into the back of his head.

I don’t know when I ended up on my elbows, but his lips descended onto mine as I felt him cum inside me. The tip of my tongue trembled along the roof of his mouth as I moaned, my body quivering with my own release. I didn’t care that my shirt was weighed down with my own spunk. Fuck the shirt.

The Alpha’s delicious taste withdrew as he pulled back and pulled his pants back up. When he was all zipped and buttoned, he took hold of my face with both his hands and kissed me softly and thoroughly. I was becoming addicted to his particular taste of dark chocolate.

The burning sensation on my neck finally simmered down when he pressed a gentle kiss to the emblem.

“I’ll text you as soon as I can.” He said as he helped me get off the counter before kissing me once more. _Dad won’t be pleased if I’m late. I wish I didn’t have to go._

I briefly wondered what was so important that his dad would be so upset about his timeliness. I watched him go, letting out a long sigh, and immediately smacked the sides of both my cheeks with my hands. Keep it together, Avion. It’s still too soon for you to be sighing like some lovesick pup, I told myself.

Though it took me longer than usual to make my way to the bathroom connected to my room, I didn’t really regret it.  

 


	6. 06

Marlena's memoirs were a Godsend. She had documented her case as well as the case of the other two Telepathic canines that she interacted with. The Beta-Alpha couple were a male-male relationship and it was so tumultuous that the Telepathic Beta never let his Alpha know that he could read his thoughts and they never reached a solid union. The other Omega-Alpha couple was a male Omega with a female Alpha. Theirs was the opposite kind of relationship where there was open trust between them both. Shortly after their first full mating, the two of them were able to read one another's thoughts without any trouble.

Marlena's relationship, however, was uneven at first. Though she cared greatly for her Rottweiler Alpha, it wasn't until a year later that they were able to read one another's thoughts. For her, it was difficult to fully trust her Alpha enough to allow him into her mind just as he allowed her into his…at least, in the beginning. I knew how she felt.

The only true, unconditional, trust I had for anyone was for my mother. Morgan came a close second. Lexus was a tentative third. It wasn't that I didn't  _want_ to trust Lex with my life and with everything that I was…it was that I found it hard to fully trust  _anyone._ Due to my looks, other canines either wanted to befriend me with shallow intentions or use me for their own entertainment. Some canines were jealous of the attention I received…the attention I never asked for.

The sound of an incoming text drew me out of my thoughts.

**My Lexus 7:30PM**

_Finally finished helping out my dad. My parents want to meet you._

You already told them about us? I haven't even told my mom yet!

_Yeah, they were wondering why I kept silencing my phone after 5:30._

They call you every day? I only talk to my mom once or twice a week.

_Is she really busy?_

No, but she knows that I am. She asks that I call her, not the other way around.

_She sounds pretty amazing._

So, when did your parents want to meet?

_This weekend, if at all possible._

That should be ok.

_Avi, my parents are…not the kindest people in the world._

Is there anything I should do to avoid upsetting them?

_No, just be yourself. I won't let them do anything to you._

Ok.

::

I took a moment to phrase what I wanted to say.

::

Lex, ever since you claimed me, I've been feeling someone's eyes on us after classes.

_You have?_

At first I thought it was just general jealousy, but it's been pretty consistent. Have you felt it?

::

Once again, I saw him text and erase, text and erase.

::

 _Not that I know of,_ he wrote back.

::

I was disappointed with his response. If he wasn't going to be honest with me, then I'd have to search for the truth myself. Tomorrow, I would seek out our stalker and find out what his deal was by confronting him directly.

::::

The following morning, Lexus thought that my drab mood was due to his having left so abruptly to go see his dad. I let him believe it because the misdirection would help me track down our stalker without his trying to interfere.

I felt the glares directed at us during lunch. Lexus sat closer to me and gave me more intimate touches than usual in an attempt to make up for what he felt he did wrong. His proximity to me seemed to really incite our stalker. I almost felt ill from the sensation of being watched so closely.

When I first felt the chills, I figured it was all in my head. I thought that the stress of maturing into an Omega and being claimed was getting to me.

The invisible daggers being aimed at us were  _not_ an illusion.

Morgan was also concerned with what he saw on my face. He passed me a note during Humanities class, something he hadn't done since we were in high school. As much as the concern made me smile, I realized I couldn't keep anything from my bestie.

::

_Hey, what's going on? You look like you're getting ready to start another fight._

Remember how I said I felt that Lex and I were being watched? Later on today, I'm gonna find out if it's true or not.

_What? How?_

I'm cutting out of my last class a little early and am going down the hallway where I last felt the glaring.

_Why don't you wait to investigate with Lexus?_

That's the thing, Lex keeps denying we even have one. No, I have to do this alone.

_I don't like the sound of that. Just be careful, ok?_

::

As I had explained to Morgan, about fifteen minutes before the class ended, I excused myself to go to the restroom. I walked down the hallway where Lex thought he had caught his scent. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw some movement. Someone had excited a class. I rushed after them.

"Hey, wait!" I called out as I neared the tall figure. When he turned around, I noticed that he had file folders in one hand and a briefcase in the next. He was a  _scholar._

"You lost or something?" the scholar asked and I shook my head.

"Sorry, I mistook you for someone else," I responded.

I let out a deep breath as he walked away. My feet began to drag as I slowly made my way back. What was I thinking? How could I possibly narrow down who our stalker was if I didn't even know his face? I dragged a hand down my face as I tried to think.

I felt someone tug me sideways by my hoodie and nearly fell as I lost my balance. I felt a large hand covering my mouth and the coldness of a curved blade at my throat. The blade was so sharp that I didn't realize it had cut me until I felt blood running down the emblem on my neck. I heard the stranger's heavy breathing and let out a sound of disgust when his tongue licked at my blood.

My emblem began to hurt, burning in a fiery rejection.

I struggled against him until he pressed the blade against my inner thigh, way too close to the family jewels for comfort.

" _You're not going anywhere."_

I knew that voice! Before I was able to make another attempt at freeing myself, I felt a sharp pain on the back of my head and my vision darkened.

::::

I felt groggy. The lower left side of my head throbbed in pain, as did the emblem on my neck. My lips felt dry. A gag had been stuffed in my mouth, and I found it difficult to think. My body kept wanting to drift back into unconsciousness, but an annoying voice startled me awake.

"The albino that got away."

My pale lilac eyes settled on a face that was both beautiful and disturbing. He had dark brown eyes, fair skin, and black hair that reached down to his chin. Though his skin was fair, he had imperfections like freckles and birthmarks. I had always envied his looks. His appearance had never been ridiculed or laughed about.

"Ashur?" My question was muffled due to the gag. I didn't know what he used to tie my hands behind the chair, but it felt thick and soft.

Out of all the Alphas that could have stalked us, I would have preferred anyone other than Ashur. Hell, I would have even preferred Nestor. Though, I had heard through Sabine that Nestor had settled down with a male Beta and the couple lived in another town.

Ashur was sadistic and unpredictable. Crazy, I'd even say. I never regretted having turned him down because I knew him to be violent and selfish.

Damn, I hadn't even realized that he came to the same campus.

A quick glance around made me realize that we were in an empty classroom. How long had I been knocked out? Was there anyone still around? Would anyone be able to hear me?

"I've always  _admired_ you, Avion," Ashur admitted. The words didn't sound very sincere. "You never gave any ground and always fought back."

I swallowed hard. I didn't know where he was going with any of this. I didn't know what he was planning to do. All I could do for the moment was observe.

Ashur reached out to roughly tug the top of my hair until my head tilted back. The throbbing on the lower left side of my head intensified. "And then you allowed yourself to be claimed by  _Lexus_ of all people…that pathetic, useless dolt."

I heard the sound of walking and running outside of the classroom. My eyes lit up with hope at the sound. There were still people around!

As if he sensed my thoughts, Ashur used the hold he had on my hair to tilt my neck to the side where my emblem was. I felt his nail dragging down just below the cut, causing pain to flare up. He then leaned down to give my ear a sharp bite.

I let out a muffled cry.

"I think I will cut this tasteless emblem right off your skin," Ashur growled.

"No!" I cried out once again though no one could hear me.  ** _Lexus!_** I felt something inside my chest clench as I sent out the plea.

_Avi? Avi, is that you?_

**_Lex! You can hear me? Ashur has me! Ashur has me in an empty classroom!_ **

_I'll find you! Just keep talking to me!_

I felt the blade sliding down to my collarbone and up the other side of my neck.

"Or perhaps, I will carve one out of my own," Ashur contemplated aloud. "In a much bigger place, one that Lexus will always be able to see…"

I was nearly choked as he roughly tugged at the collar of my shirt and tore it open in the back with the blade.

**_Lex, he's going to cut my back up!_ **

_Just hold on!_

I felt Ashur's hands spread across my back and his lips descending on my spine. My body began to shiver in disgust. He bit at the skin and then tugged it sharply between his teeth.

"Hah!" I hissed in pain.  ** _Lex…I'm sorry. I thought I could confront him alone…_**

We were both startled by the sound of keys opening the lock on the door. Lexus immediately ran in, rushing past the university's dean in the process. I started crying, happy to just see him. I didn't have time to feel ashamed about it. The shame could come later.

The blue-eyed Alpha quickly took hold of Ashur's wrist tightly until the blade was dropped from his hand. The Bernese struggled to get out of the grasp, but Lexus adamantly dragged him towards the dean.

"You've seen it with your own eyes now, right?" Lexus challenged the dean. "My mate is  _hurt._ You can no longer allow this to continue."

I saw the dean lower his head as if in defeat. "I…I understand," he replied. He then slowly walked over to untie me. "You both have my deepest apology."

As I stood up from the chair and removed the gag, I had every intention to help Lexus with Ashur. Lexus must have read my thoughts, because he stopped me right in my tracks.

" **No. Morgan will catch up with us soon. You are to wait here for him and then the two of you are going home,"**  Lexus commanded. "I will deal with Ashur myself."

Just a few hours ago, I would have given him hell for using another Alpha command on me. But, at that particular moment in time, I really  _did_ just want to go home.

The moment I saw Morgan skidding to a halt in front of the door, totally out of breath, I rushed over to hug him tightly. The Beta didn't hesitate to hug me back. "I knew something bad was gonna happen," Morgan babbled. "That's why I told Lex right after class…thank goodness you're ok!"

I broke down into more tears while in the presence of my best friend.

Morgan decided to skip all of his evening classes to stay at home with me.


	7. 07

"We're taking it to court," Morgan huffed. Instead of going home right away, he insisted that we stop by the hospital so that my injuries could be documented. "Ashur's what? 21, nearly 22? He's not getting away with this. I don't care how much money his family donates to MU."

"You're right," I nodded. "If I don't press charges, he could do something similar or worse to someone else. Wait, how do you know his family donates to MU?"

"Am I the only one that reads the student handbook?" Morgan responded with a sigh. "All the top donating families are listed there. Lex's family's on the list and so is Derrick's family."

"Lex's family too?"

"Yeah, man."

Filing a police report was much easier with Morgan helping me. He filled most of it out for me since I was still feeling a bit groggy. Though I knew that Morgan had always wanted to follow in his grandfather's footsteps, I hadn't realized just how serious he was about his future career. I was seeing everything with new eyes. He really  _did_ want to become a police officer. He wasn't just doing it to follow a kid's dream or to make his grandpa proud. Those were just bonuses.

"You're amazing, you know that?" I admitted.

Morgan seemed a bit startled, as if his entire focus had been on the report. When he sorted out what I said, he gave me a brilliant smile. "What are besties for?" He countered.

::::

We took a taxi to get back to the apartment and, a few minutes later, Lexus arrived. After Morgan opened the door for him, the chocolate lab peered at me over his shoulder. "I'm going to walk over to Sabine's," he announced. "Unless you want me to stay?"

"I'll be fine," I affirmed. "And Morgan?" I called just as he was about to step out the door. "Thank you for everything."

He sent me an encouraging smile before closing the door behind him.

I took a deep breath as I tried to settle the nervous butterflies in my stomach. Was Lexus angry with me? Was he disappointed? Did he regret choosing me?

 _How could I possibly regret choosing you? Do you regret accepting_ me _?_

I hadn't realized that he was able to read my sporadic thoughts.  _ **Of course not.**_ I responded.  _ **I couldn't have asked for a better mate!**_

"I wouldn't go as far as that," he replied aloud with a rueful smile. "I  _did_ keep the fact that I knew that Ashur was following us around to myself, after all. And I apologize wholeheartedly for that."

"Why  _did_  you keep it from me?"

"After what happened in high school and how you reacted so strongly against anyone and anything that reminded you of them…" He explained. "I just didn't want him to cause you any more grief. I cornered him and told him to back off, but he kept on. I told the Dean about it, but he wouldn't take my word on it alone since Ashur's family was one of the bigger sponsors for MU." He frowned, clenching a fist. "And then something like  _this_ happened."

I reached out to take his fist into both my hands. "You couldn't have known," I responded. "In the past, it was always  _Nestor_  that was the physical attacker. Ashur had always been sadistic enough to enjoy seeing me hurt, but he had never physically attacked me before this. I had heard he was violent too, but I had never been the actual recipient."

"I'm glad Morgan helped you file out a report," He confessed with a sigh of relief. "He's a great friend. I'm sorry I took so long and couldn't meet up with you both at the hospital. I had to give a report myself to the Dean and to the police."

Lex lifted his hand and I let it go so that he could gently cup the side of my face. "How are you feeling? Where are you hurt?" He asked.

"He hit me pretty hard and I have a bit of a goose egg on the back of my head," I admitted with a shudder. I found it hard to turn or move my head too fast without it hurting. "And there's a bruise on my back from where he bit me…not to mention the cut along the emblem on my neck. But, thankfully it wasn't deep."

"Can I see it?"

I nodded and carefully tilted my head. I had changed into another shirt as soon as I got home. Morgan had quickly thrown the one that was torn in the trash for me. So, it would be trickier to show him the bruise on my back.

I felt Lex's warm fingers along my neck, but he didn't touch anywhere near the cut.  _He's alive. He's hurt, but alive. I need to calm down before I become more of a hindrance than help._

"I'm sorry," I found myself whispering.

"You have nothing to feel sorry for," Lexus insisted. "Why are you apologizing when it was all Ashur's doing?"

I bit my lower lip as I fought the tears once again. "No, about the mind-reading thing...I was going to tell you, but a part of me was scared and paranoid."  _ **Why couldn't I have just told you right away?**_

 _I know_ now _, Avi. That's all that matters._ He lifted my hand to press the knuckles against his forehead.  _But, Avi, was the mind-reading as scary for you as it is for me right now?_

"Only at first," I confessed aloud as I moved in to hug him. He hesitated for a moment, as if he didn't know where to place his arms where it wouldn't hurt me. Ultimately, he carefully wrapped them around my shoulders as he hugged me back.

 _ **Are you afraid of sharing your thoughts with me?**_ I asked him.

_I just don't want my silly thoughts to scare you._

I let out a soft snort.  _ **You mean like when you called me your 'little dragon?'**_ When I looked up, I had the rare pleasure of seeing Lexus blushing.  _ **To be fair, I did call you 'My Faceless Bus Stalker Alpha' for a while.**_

 _What do you call me now?_ He mentally wondered.

"My Lexus," I confessed aloud.

I felt him press a kiss to the top of my head. "Come on, you should get some rest," he suggested. "I'll tuck you in."

"Lex...can you stay?" I asked. "I mean, at least until Morgan gets back?"

"I'll stay for as long as you want," he replied.  _All night long, even._

I gave him a smile.  _ **I'd like that.**_

::::::::

In the weeks that followed, we were all busy. Lexus and Morgan were really serious about taking Ashur to court, and everything was handled surprisingly fast. Ashur had apparently not singled me out alone in his attacks. Three other Omegas also came forward after hearing about what happened to me. It was almost surreal to hear that Ashur would spend time in jail despite the influence of his family.

My mother, Jacqueline (Jackie) Arter, literally came to visit me once a week from the moment I told her about it. But, after the first initial couple of weeks, she mostly came to visit in order to get to know Lexus and to embarrass me by telling him tales of my youth. She was a yorkie too, and though she had some signs of Albinism, most of it was passed on to me. She was a pale blonde with hazel eyes. My grandfather apparently looked just like me at his age. She even brought the pictures to prove it.

The young man in the photo, however, had a more mature look in his eyes than I did. He passed away before I turned two years old. But, according to my mom, he was absolutely enamored with me.

"From the moment you opened your eyes and looked at him, he swore that you were looking right into his soul," she relayed. "Like a miniature clone."

"Jeez mom, a clone?" I whine. "Did he really say that?"

I heard Lexus chuckle beside me.

"Oh alright, so maybe it was just  _me_ that thought it," she conceded as she pulled her long, blonde hair back into a ponytail. If it weren't for the small wrinkles around her hazel eyes, she could have passed for a college student herself.

My parents were generally opposites in personalities, though my dad, Dominic Arter, was also a blonde. He had golden yellow hair and hazel eyes. Despite being a Golden Retriever, who were usually known to be friendly and sociable, my father was a studious introvert. He was in the air force and we rarely saw him. Mom and I looked forward to the day he would retire. We missed him whenever he was away, but we knew that flying was his passion.

"Hey mom, when is dad coming back?" I asked. "I really want him to meet Lex."

"He should be back sometime next month, sweetie," mom replied. "Don't worry, he'll definitely approve of your Lex." She then reached over to pat the top of Lexus's head, which was easy to do since we were all sitting down looking at photo albums. "He's a  _good_ Alpha."

"At least I  _try_ to be," Lexus admitted. "We all make mistakes…"

"And the very fact that you even admit to that makes you A-O.K. in my book," she concluded.

I felt a sudden warmth inside. Though he still had to meet my dad, the fact that my mom already approved of him made me happy. Lexus had definitely been nervous at the beginning, but she quickly put him at ease in her usual charismatic manner.

Though I took after my dad in the love of history and books, I definitely got my "moxie" from mom. At times, I wanted so badly to be more like her...to be as strong and sociable as her. She was just like Morgan in that respect. She was able to befriend anyone regardless of age or status.

"And this one is when his cousins dressed him up like cupid for his birthday on Halloween when he was a darling 2-year-old cherub!" She cooed as she showed Lexus the embarrassing image.

Then again, I knew I would never embarrass my future kids by showing off their baby pictures to potential suitors. Granted, Lexus was no longer a suitor, he was my  _mate._  How strange it was to accept that...

My mom's voice then fell to a sly whisper.  _"At first, he fought them off when they were placing the costume on him and he went around streaking naked with only a pair of costume wings on his back and a heart arrow in his hand!"_

Lexus let out a rich laugh. "How adorable!"

"Yep, I think that's enough pictures for one day," I declared as I reached over to put away the albums with a face that was surely flushed.

"Don't worry, Lexie, I'll send you copies," I heard my mom tell him.

I could only let out a groan of despair.

"He doesn't want copies!" I whined.

"Hey," Lexus rebutted. "I  _definitely_ want copies!"

"He's just being shy. Did I ever tell you how shy Avion's dad was during college?" Jackie practically purred. "Let me tell you, for a Retriever, he was practically the Omega and I was practically his Alpha…"

::::

As the gate automatically closed behind us on our way into Lex's family estate, I almost felt as if we were entering another country. I had never seen a private property with such an enormous expanse of land before. Why did I keep getting shivers? It's not like Lex's parents would murder me and hide my body somewhere in their own private woods, right?

" _No one's going to murder you and bury you in the woods,"_ Lexus responded to me mentally.

I didn't realize my wary thoughts had been broadcasting.  _ **"How would you know?"**_ I questioned back telepathically.  _ **"If the bodies were buried down deep enough, you would have never come across their bones while playing in the woods."**_

"You sure have quite the imagination, love," Lex commented aloud. "Are you sure you don't want to be a Scholar of Literature instead?"

"Are you sure  _you_ don't want to be a Sports Coach instead?" I fired right back.

"My father was the one into sports. He signed me up for everything just because I had the talent that he lacked when he was my age," he explained with a shake of his head. "I've always enjoyed performing arts more than sports."

I stayed quiet after that. Who was I to judge? Having the talent for something didn't necessarily mean that a person enjoyed doing it. _ **"I didn't realize you were so passionate about drama."**_

" _To be fair, I didn't know you were so passionate about history."_

I gave him a half-smile as he finally parked the car. I didn't remember ever being so nervous. I tried to push the feeling down as he opened the passenger door for me and took my hand in his. We could do this. It was just lunch.

After we walked inside and were greeted by a real butler, it felt like we had to walk half a mile to get to reach the patio. We had to walk down yet another path until we reached a large water fountain. From there we took a turn past what appeared to be a life-sized labyrinth until we reached a canopied area with tables, chairs, and umbrellas.

Lexus had explained to me that his dad was a silver sable-coated American Alsatian and his mother, Brittney Streicher, was a black-coated Poodle. But, he hadn't told me that his father, Giles Streicher, had such intimidating-looking yellow eyes. The man was wider and taller than Lex with gray hair and a grey beard that was shaved with such sharp edges and angles that it looked downright villainous.

Lex's mother had gorgeous curly black hair that fell down her back in cascades. She also had similar blue eyes to Lex's, though hers were rounder and larger. She looked like a delicate, porcelain doll.

Lex's father's glared at me for such a long time that I began to feel cold on such a sunny day.

"So,  _you_  are the reason that the Streicher bloodline ends with my son."

"Giles!" Mrs. Streicher gasped.

However, the massive man didn't appear to be chagrined whatsoever. He glanced at Lexus and then back to me as he approached us both. "Or would you not impede my son from taking on a second, female, mate?" He questioned.

I was taken aback for a moment, but then I clenched my fists and looked him right in his yellow eyes. "No, I wouldn't...IF it's something that HE wants."

"Which I don't," Lexus insisted. "I don't need bloodline heirs, we can adopt."

"That's absurd!" Giles Streicher scoffed. "You heard him yourself, you can take on another mate that can bear a child-"

"I don't  _want_ another mate," Lex argued. "And I'll only have a child if Avion's willing to adopt one  _with_ me."

I couldn't deny that my heart skipped just a bit. I hadn't been joking about allowing Lexus to take on another mate if he really wanted to have a kid of his own. But, the fact that he left the decision of adopting open for me made me feel like he really did value my opinion...that he wanted us to make important decisions together.

Lex's words definitely didn't seem to sit right with his dad, however.

"So, you'll kill off our blood? Our ancestry?" Giles growled as he motioned towards me. "For  _him_?"

"Honey, calm down," Mrs. Streicher pleaded in a weak tone of voice. She then turns towards us. "Please, don't take what he said to heart, he's just being his stubborn and unreasonable self."

" **Go back into the house right now!"** Giles commanded her.

Mrs. Streicher frowned and reached out to press a hand to her son's face before kissing him goodbye on the cheek. She sent me an apologetic glance before walking back towards the house. She didn't say a single word, but the sadness in her blue eyes was easy to see.

" **And you!"** Giles continued as he pointed a finger at me.  **"If you don't get my son to change his mind, I'll-"**

Lexus immediately stood before me, back straight and chest out, in a protective stance. "How  _dare_ you try to command my mate?" He hissed. I had never heard him sound so angry. "Don't you see how much you  _hurt_ mom when you're like this? Ordering her inside like some child when she's done nothing wrong!"

" **You are my son and you will do as I say!"**

"I am a mated Alpha now," Lexus growled back. "I don't have to do  _anything_ you say, especially not when you're like this." His voice became softer when he regarded me. "I apologize in his stead for everything. Do you want to head back?"

I shot a final glance at the aged Alsatian. He didn't look like he was going to listen to anyone any time soon. "Yeah, let's head back," I agreed.

We had to go back towards the house so that we could leave the same way that we entered. Lex's mother stopped us before we headed out the door. The next thing I knew, I was nearly crushed in a tight hug by the ravenette.

"Oh, honey," she whimpered. "Don't you listen to that stubborn old goat!"

"It's ok mom, I should have known better," Lexus responded a bit dejectedly.

His mother then pulled him into a hug, as well. "I'm sorry I can't do much when he gets like this...but, know that I really am glad you found your mate. Grandkids or not, I would still like to see you both every once in a while."

"Next time, I'll pick you up and leave dad behind," Lexus replied. "You'd really get along great with Avi's mom. She's really cool and funny...and you could exchange baby pictures of us."

"I'd really like that," Mrs. Streicher whispered in response.

As we drove back out the ridiculously long driveway I couldn't help but feel that, though Lexus had grown up with wealth, I had really been the more privileged one.

::

a/n: Apologies for the delay. My sister underwent an operation and it's been a chaotic week.


	8. 08

a/n: Tried my best to make this part of the story cohesive. Hope it makes sense to everyone. Feel free to ask any questions if it doesn't.

::

The month that followed was a lot calmer. Both of our mothers really did meet up to compare pictures and anecdotes of our respective childhood. Lexus and my father met during his stay and, though the initial introductions were a bit awkward, there was no bloodshed or drama. According to Morgan, Lex had been nervous about first impressions, but the chocolate lab did his best to lay those fears to rest.

Morgan himself was planning to ask Sabine to become a more official couple towards the end of November. I couldn't have been happier for them both. My envy of their progressive relationship dissipated the more I focused on my own relationship, backward as it was. Given the same opportunity as Morgan and Sabine, I had a feeling that things would have turned out the same. Even as a Beta, I probably still would have chosen Lexus.

"I just wish I had more to offer her," Morgan stated as he tied his shoes. As usual, he was getting ready to head out to the bus for his first class early in the morning. "I mean, I don't even have a car…"

"Mor, she doesn't care about that. We're all still college students," I insisted as I handed him his coat and tugged my own coat on. Though Lexus picked me up every day, I still walked Morgan halfway to his bus stop to see him out. "You can worry about supporting each other after graduation. For now, just enjoy getting to know each other."

"Well, at least I'm not alone in that area," Morgan snickered as the two of us headed out the door and locked it. "You and Lex have been doing things backwards, but it still seems to be working out." He carried his backpack with him along with a few binders in his arms. Half of his load was usually deposited in the locker throughout the day. But, most of the books would end up coming back for assignments.

I sent him a wry grin. "He may be my Alpha, but he's going at my pace, which is something I appreciate…" I admitted. "Considering that my pace is kind of all over the place. One moment, we're rutting on the dining room table, the next we're helping each other study for an exam…"

Morgan nodded absently until the words seemed to sink in. "Wait,  _our_ dining room table? Gross, man! We eat off of there!"

"I disinfect everything, honest!" I replied between a fit of laughter at the expression on my best friend's face.

We were so absorbed in our banter that we barely noticed the van that pulled up beside us. Morgan's attention immediately shifted when the doors began to open and several uniformed men filed out. Instinctively, he took off, likely to seek help. But, we were outnumbered and they were faster.

I was so confused about what was happening around us that I didn't react fast enough. The next thing we knew, the two of us were shoved into the van and were restrained. I opened my mouth to call out to Morgan when a gas mask was shoved against my nose and mouth. The material hurt against the bridge of my nose and cheeks as I struggled against their hold. I saw that Morgan was struggling as well across from me.

 _ **Lex!**_ I called out internally as Morgan's form began to wane like rising waves of heat. I heard a deep voice hollering before my consciousness faded.

::::

When I came to, I was laid across the cold pavement of a prison cell. I was disoriented and it took a while to find my footing without collapsing back onto the ground. I took hold of the bars of the cell as my vision began to focus. Bewilderment morphed into sheer panic at the state of Morgan.

My brown-eyed best friend was tied up to a chair. He had bruises everywhere and was slightly leaning to one side as if he was nursing some kind of injury there. Morgan was shaking, though I couldn't tell whether it was due to the pain or due to trying to fight an Alpha command. As one of the uniformed men began to bark orders, I realized that it was the latter.

I felt sick to my stomach at the sight.

"Commander, he's awake," a woman said as she motioned towards me.

I began to breathe in short, fast intakes of air as I was addressed. Never had I ever felt so frightened, not even when Ashur threatened to cut me up. The fear wasn't for me, but for Morgan's safety. Just who were they and why were they doing this?

"Nice of you to join us," the commander rumbled.

I used my hold on the bars to lift myself higher so that I could look at the man. He had one blue eye and one brown eye. The rest of his body was covered, which would make it difficult to identify him later. Though the eyes were uncommon, they weren't exactly rare. The entire group wore similar uniforms. They had no emblems or distinguishing symbols on their clothes.

"This show is all for you," the commander continued as he clutched the top of Morgan's head. My breath hitched in concern at the twinge of pain that travelled across the Labrador's face. "This Beta can delay Alpha commands," he pointed out as he dragged a thumb along Morgan's lower lip. "But, as you can tell by the blissful silence we are currently in, he  _can't_ delay them for long."

"Since we can't command  _you_  to do anything, you'll just have to deal with seeing your friend suffer in your stead," the commander concluded as he shoved the back of Morgan's head against the tall chair until a 'thunk' could be heard from the contact.

"Stop it! Just who are you doing this for?" I questioned as my eyes filled with unshed tears. My gaze remained focused on my best friend. If they hadn't seen me with him, would Morgan currently be in this position?  _Fuck!_ "What is the point of torturing a couple of college students?"

"Commander, Mr. S is on the line," yet another uniformed man announced as he approached from a dimly lit hallway.

"Enjoy this respite while you can," the commander stated before motioning for the entire group to follow him down the hallway.

My arms trembled as they clutched onto the bars tighter. I didn't have a doubt in my mind that the uniformed group had been hired to capture us. "Mor, I'm so sorry," I hissed. He must have been commanded to keep his mouth shut because he couldn't seem to respond back. But, his light brown eyes didn't leave mine.

I took a shaky breath as I tried to once again send out a plea.  _ **Lex? Lex, please tell me you can hear me…**_

No response.

_**Lexus, please!** _

Just how far away were we? Was there a limit to how far I could reach him?

"Damn it!" I cursed as I pressed my forehead against one of the bars. I had to figure out a way to get us out of this situation.

My gaze fell down to where the iron bars melded into one solid metal plate embedded into the ground. The plate was 36" (91cm) from the ground. The highest I could safely jump in my canine form was 12" (30.5cm). I knelt down and placed a hand on the space between the bars. I placed another hand on the bricked wall on the side. If I could somehow use the brick wall to launch myself further through the gap…

"I'm gonna jump it," I told Morgan, who immediately began to shake his head.

At the moment, we didn't have much of a choice. We could either wait there until the group came back, or we could try to get out of there. I, for one, wasn't going to stand around to see Morgan receive more injuries than he already had.

Shifting took a lot of concentration, especially to be able to shift with clothes and all. I had to fight through my fears and frustration in order to focus on that one task alone. My line of vision lowered as I shrank down into my Yorkie form. I took the jump at a run again and again.

I knocked the breath right out of my tiny body twelve times until I finally managed to make it through the opening of the bars. I landed heavily on my left foreleg and it took everything I had not to cry out. Shit, had I sprained it? I limped my way towards Morgan, who actually had a few tears escaping the corner of his eyes. Was he that worried about me?

Both Morgan and I gazed towards the hallway when we heard a distant commotion. Crap! I was little more than a white snowball. There was nowhere to hide out in the open. My lilac eyes landed on the hem of Morgan's long, baggy pants. I rushed towards it on three legs and struggled to duck into the fabric, using my good foreleg to lift myself up enough to balance my two lower paws onto Mor's sneakers.

I couldn't see anything, but I heard a set of boots clunking around back and forth in the room before kicking the metal plate of the barred cell and ultimately stopping near Morgan.

" **Speak, Beta."** Came the Alpha command. "Where's the Omega gone? Someone just offered more money for the both of you."

"Miles…away by now…" Morgan croaked. One of my paws unfortunately slipped off the shoe at that moment.

"Bullshit. We'd have seen him-oooh, I see. Such a clever little shit."

I let out a keening whimper when I was tugged right off of Morgan's leg. I squirmed and tried to bite the man. However, his grip was so tight that it was all in vain.

The commander peered at the cell and then back at me. "If you weren't such a breakable little thing fought over by the rich, I'd keep you for myself and train you to be of stealthy use."

Fought over by the rich? Could Ashur's family be behind this? I just knew that they wouldn't let their son be incarcerated without a fuss!

I was then shoved in a carrying case, of all things, and Morgan was hefted over someone's shoulder. With my good foreleg, I slowly and carefully unzipped the carrying case and hopped out before they tossed me back in the van. In spite of the pain on my sprained leg, I took off. I had already rounded the corner of the nearest building by the time they realized I was no longer inside the case.

I kept running and running until I saw a small window open on the side of an auto shop. I hopped onto a box, a trash can, and a trash dumpster in order to slip into the window. A shelf lay below the window and I carefully clambered onto it. By that point, the pain was too much for my small canine body. I laid down on my side and promptly passed out.

::::

I don't know how much time passed. Minutes? Hours? When I came to, it was to the sound of an employee rooting around for tools on the shelf. I peered down around the same time as he looked up. For a moment, we just stared at one another in surprise.

"Avion? S'that you?" Derrick questioned tentatively before talking to himself immediately after. "I mean, unless he has a sibling or something…"

I barked to draw his attention back to me.

"Right! Need help getting down from up there?"

I nodded and barked once again. He rushed about getting a ladder and held out a hand to help me down. When he saw me limping, he frowned. "You're hurt, too? What the hell happened, little buddy?"

When I was set down onto the floor, I shifted back. Shifting back with an injury was always a painful ordeal. But, due to my many injuries in the past, I was almost used to it. Both my shoulder and wrist burned in agony. "Derrick…call Lex…" I panted.

"Got it!"

I looked on as the Doberman searched for his phone and frantically called the Blue German Shepherd he called 'friend.' My stomach was all tied up in knots with worry. How were we ever going to find Morgan? We had to free him!

" _Wait, listen! He's right here,"_  Derrick tried to explain. "I mean, he's kinda beaten up, but I'm about to take him to the hospital- what? Morgan, too?"

I straightened up at the mention of Morgan. Had Lexus figured out that we had been abducted? Was he actively searching for us both?

" _Yeah, we'll meet you there,"_ the Doberman concluded. "He said he found Morgan all beaten up too and they're at the hospital. Ready to go meet up with them and have that arm checked out?"

I let out a sigh of relief, feeling my body finally relax, as if it had been taut the entire time. "Yeah, am I ever. Thanks Derrick."

::::

_Avi?_

I felt another sense of relief when I was able to hear Lexus's thoughts in my head. Derrick and I were only two blocks from the hospital. So, it seemed that Lexus and I were finally within "hearing" range.

_**Derrick and I are almost there. How's Morgan? How did you find him?** _

_I tried calling you when I didn't see you in front of the apartment, but I heard your phone ringing inside. I thought that maybe you were still at Morgan's bus stop and headed that way only to find two of his binders on the ground. I called in a favor with dad and he found out that a shady organization used by influential families had just recently grabbed two college students for ransom…so, dad made a bigger offer. I had just about lost my mind when they made the trade for Morgan and you were gone._

_**Yeah, I kinda gave them the slip at the last second. But, I didn't know they were talking about your dad. All I could think about was getting us out of there.** _

_I don't blame you. Morgan has been ranting about legal repercussions from the moment we got to the hospital. He forced the doctors to take pictures of him at every angle. Are you sure he doesn't want to be a lawyer instead of a police officer?_

_**That's something we'll have to ask him personally when things settle back down. The two of us are definitely gonna need some kind of therapy after this.** _

_Avi, love, I think even I might need therapy after this._

_**We can all go together, then.** _


	9. 09

When my arm was placed in a sling and I was told that recovery could take a full month, I was relieved that it hadn't been my dominant one. I had broken bones in the past and could use my opposite hand to write, but it wasn't nearly as fast and fluid as my dominant one. I studied best when I wrote down or typed out notes, so I figured I was a bit more of a visual than an auditory learner.

On the downside, that also meant that I had to work harder at listening to others as I grew older.

_Really? I think you're a great listener._

I shot my Alpha a wry smile. The two of us were really starting to get a hold of our rare bond and the fact that we could communicate through our thoughts to one another. Every now and then, it would be embarrassing…like when I felt the need to throw away my 'special' pillow and Lexus laughed for a full two minutes about it. Lex hadn't come out unscathed, either, since the memories of his past dating mishaps assaulted him whenever his mom shared old pictures of him with us. But, most of the time, we treated each other's stray thoughts as candid comments. The more we became used to it, the less it bothered us.

_**I don't know…if I hadn't been talking so much and goofing off with Morgan, I'd have paid more attention to what was going on around us and we might not have been taken like that.** _

_You were both targeted. They made sure that you were off-guard. No one can be on sharp alert every minute of every hour of the day._

I reached out to grasp his hand with my dominant one. The mere warmth was somehow comforting. But, once again, the image of my best friend all bruised and beaten up rose to my mind. In all the fights that I had been in, whether I started them or not, the safety of those around me had never been a priority. When bristled up with anger, my focus always narrowed down to the danger in front of me and nothing else.

Morgan being a Beta…I never, not once, considered it as a vulnerability before. Morgan was my bigger, brighter brother. He was so kind and relatable to others that I always thought him untouchable. I felt my heart clench as if someone had squeezed the bottom half of it. He had been injured because of  _me…_ because someone, somewhere, had some kind of beef with me.

"Come on," Lexus suggested as he urged me onto my feet. "Let's go see how he's doing."

We ended up stopping in our tracks as we neared the room Morgan was in and heard yelling.

"I don't understand why you're being so damn stubborn!" The unmistakable sound of Sabine's voice echoed down the hallway. "You know what? I'm going to the cafeteria to get you some napkins so that you can wipe your mouth," she downright growled as she exited the room. She didn't even look our way as she tossed her hands in the air towards Morgan's direction. "There's  _clearly_  still a tiny bit of bullshit around your lips." That being said, she turned on her heel and headed towards the cafeteria.

Lexus and I glanced at each other and I could have sworn I saw the tiniest hint of fear in his eyes. Though, it could have very well been a mirror of the own fear I felt. We've seen Sabine upset a good several times before. But, not  _that_ upset.

My face fell when we reached the doorway and I saw the profile of my friend's face. He had quite the torn expression. The swelling on his face had gone down a bit and some of the bruises had darkened. But, it was easy to tell that the emotion on his face had nothing to do with physical pain.

"H-Hey," I called out softly as we approached. "What did the doc say?"

As he turned his head to look my way, he didn't bother to hide how he really felt. Morgan was a very honest man and there was very little that caused him shame. But, I saw it in his eyes…the slightest touch of shame.

"No broken bones, but to expect a  _lot_ of soreness for the next several days," Morgan recounted. "Tried to give me the stronger pain meds, but I talked him down to over-the-counter stuff. I don't mess with those strong pain prescriptions."

I placed a hand on his blanket-buried foot. "I ran just like your gramps told us to," I commented.

"Yeah man," Morgan responded with bit of a grin. "That was freaking awesome! I couldn't believe it. Who knew you'd be the one to successfully put grandpa's kidnapping advice into action."

"Oh? But, you attempted it first! You almost got away from them at the very start!" I countered.

The grin slipped slightly. "I should have been more vigilant," the chocolate Labrador replied. "Should have reacted faster-"

"Morgan, I didn't react at  _all_ at first! Your instincts are just fine!" I insisted.

He gave me another not-quite-smile and then he turned his gaze to Lexus. "We need to get to the bottom of this," he prompted. "Avion's angered many a rich Alpha in the past."

"My dad's already got someone looking into it," Lex replied.

::::

When we were finally released from the hospital, I felt a small moment of déjà vu and realized that I've been consistently in the hospital one too many times that year. My gaze turned towards Morgan, who was the opposite case. The chocolate Labrador didn't end up at the hospital often and it made my stomach turn to see him so injured.

"Is that what you had to go through?" Morgan asked.

The question made me frown in confusion. But, Morgan didn't even look my way, his gaze elsewhere. What part did he mean? "I was ordered around a lot in the past," I responded. "But, I always fought back whenever those orders ended up with me in pain…" I let out a soft snort. "Ok, now that I think about it, I fought back even when it was only my pride that was hurt."

I saw Morgan clenching his fist and wondered, once again, what was rolling around in his head.

"I've been Alpha Commanded by my parents, family elders, scholars...but, never by any strangers or anyone my age," he admitted. "...and never by anyone that really  _wanted_  to hurt me and actually got off on it." The last part was a whisper.

I finally understood what he meant. "You mean  _Ashur_ , don't you?" I questioned as an involuntary shudder ran through me.

"Was Nestor the same back in high school?" Morgan asked.

I shook my head. "No, definitely not," I affirmed. "Nestor let out his frustrations. But, every time he did anything that ended up with me getting hurt, I could tell he regretted it immediately afterwards. It was like he just lashed out without thinking, like he couldn't control his anger all the time."

"Anger management issues?"

I shrugged. "I think so...I mean, whenever I cried out to him to please stop, he usually did. That day that he went too far, he wasn't himself at all. He didn't respond to anything anyone said except for Ashur...it was as if he didn't even see me," I pointed out as I rubbed my arms. "The fact that he didn't express any emotions on his face that day was what scared me the most."

"So, there isn't any kind of vendetta he might have against you even now?" Morgan inquired.

"Where are you getting at with this? Do you think Nestor was behind this?" I responded. "I haven't seen him since."

"Be that as it may, he was Ashur's best friend, wasn't he?" Morgan alluded. "And we put his best friend away."

I couldn't argue that logic. "It's  _because_ we put Ashur away that I thought it could be Ashur's parentsthat did this," I countered. "That Commander said that I was being 'fought over by the rich,' and you  _did_  say his parents were wealthy enough to be top patrons for MU."

"Lexus said his dad's looking into that side of things, Ashur's parents. Seems like they came to the same conclusion," Morgan replied. "Still, I think I'm going to have Sabine tell me what she knows about where Nestor relocated with his partner."

"No way, if you're going to talk to him, I want to come too!" I insisted. I was already a bonded Omega. If anyone was in danger of Alpha Commands right now, it was Morgan and Sabine. "Come to think of it, what was Sabine arguing with you about back at the hospital? She sounded really upset."

A steely expression formed on Morgan's face. "She wanted us to complete the bond and I told her no."

"What? Why?" I asked incredulously. "You can't mean you're still hung up on having a career first…being bonded doesn't mean you have to get hitched and make babies right away. Derrick and Deziray are a testament of that."

"It's not that," Morgan hissed as he slumped down onto the couch. "I mean, yeah, that's part of it. The thing is that she's only pressuring me into completing the bond out of  _fear_. Yeah, we were both kidnapped and bad things happened," He continued as he hunched down with his elbows on his knees, raking his hair back with his hands. "And, yeah, I can still be commanded around by an Alpha. But, shouldn't we complete our bond when we both have clearer minds? What if she regrets it? What if she was meant to be with someone better than me?"

"Morgan…" I called out as I sat down next to him and carefully placed a hand on his hunched back. "Doesn't the fact that she's so frightened of losing you mean that she's already chosen you?"

Morgan took a shuddering breath as he covered his face with his hands.

"I think Sabine's made up her mind long before all this," I concluded.

"All of this has been kinda like a wake-up call to me, Avion," Morgan stated. "This is going to be my life from the moment I earn my badge. I'm more determined than ever to become an officer and to help bring shady groups like the guys who grabbed us to justice." He let out a long, downtrodden sigh. "I don't know if I can take seeing her so worried all the time over me…seeing her suffer like that."

A bittersweet smile formed on my face. "Ever stop to think that she loves you enough to push through that suffering just to be by your side? I don't think any of this is gonna stop her, brother."

The sound of the doorbell interrupted our conversation. When Morgan opened the door, it was to the sight of a large bouquet of golden roses and a frowning Sabine. It was as if we had somehow summoned her by merely talking about her.

"Yeah, I'm just going to wait for Lexus to come pick me up outside…" I suggested as I walked around Sabine and headed out the door. "I have my phone right here in my hand," I assured Morgan before closing the door. As soon as I knew they couldn't see me, I broke out into a huge grin. Try as he might, there was no way my best friend could deny how deeply he felt for Sabine. I truly hoped that they could find a compromise when it came to their bond.

The smile was still on my face when I pulled up Lex's message window. I had always been adept at dealing with my phone with just one hand, my dominant one...so, despite my other arm being in a sling, I had no difficulties with texting.

**My Lexus 6:56PM**

So, I have reason to believe that Mor and Bean might complete their bond tonight.

_Where? In the apartment?_

Yep. So, can I come stay with you for now?

_I'll be there in seven minutes!_

Seven minutes? Were you already on your way here? Are you using speech-to-text?

_Yes to all three._

Then, I'll talk to you in a little bit.

::::

I firmly ignored the butterflies in my stomach at the confirmation that Lex had already been on his way to come see me. I mean, it could have been to talk about anything, even the kidnapping case. Did that mean that I  _preferred_ for him to visit just to see me?

I needed to get a hold of myself.

When the familiar Prius pulled up a few minutes later, I had to force myself to walk at a calm and collected pace towards the passenger side and enter the car.

Lexus immediately leaned over to press a chaste kiss on my cheek. "Hey," he greeted. "How's your arm? Did you bring your pain meds?"

"I'll be fine," I dismissed with a wave of my dominant hand. I reached behind me for the seatbelt and held it in front of me. "I do need help with the seatbelt, though. You mind?"

Lex wasted no time in buckling me up. When he lifted his gaze, he caught me staring at him and jerked back into his seat. "Right, my place is fifteen minutes away. Is there anything you'd like to eat before we head over there?"

"Like a dinner date?" I prompted, and was surprised to see him blush.

"If you want," he admitted.

"A dinner date with my blue-eyed Alpha?" I teased. "How can I resist?"

He forced his gaze onto the road even as his blush deepened. He didn't even look my way when he responded telepathically.  _Do you enjoy seeing me blush, I wonder._

_**You have no idea.** _

::::

Several minutes later, the two of us were seated at a diner. I ordered a simple burger and fries, food that I could easily eat with one hand. Though, Lexus seemed to take pleasure in feeding me a fry himself every now and then. Whenever I licked the tip of his thumb, he'd space out, and I knew that he was probably thinking up all the other things I should be doing with the appendage.

Though the majority of our dinner date went well, there was a moment when we stepped back out to the car and I stiffened at the sight of a large van driving past us. When a rather large family piled out of it, I was finally able to breathe. But, Lexus took note of it all.

When we finally arrived at his apartment complex, I immediately noted just how big it was. The furniture was all new and barely used. "Wow, a big place like this and you don't host any parties?" I taunted.

"It's not exactly mine to do with as I please," Lexus remarked.

I shook my head. "I don't even like parties," I confessed. "I don't hate them, but I don't like them."

"Straddling the line of neutrality?"

"Yep," I affirmed before a smirk formed on my face. "You know what  _else_ I like to straddle?" I asked as I gently shoved him onto the couch and sat on his lap. "A certain Lexus Streicher."

The heat that formed in the Alpha's eyes caused a physical reaction in my core and my heartbeat to pick up a few notches. We both moved into a warm kiss; then another. I felt Lex's hands at the base of my spine before they gripped onto my hips.

"Wait, Avi," he urged. "We have to be careful with your arm."

I let out a sigh. "Ok...then, where's your bed?" I asked. "Being careful doesn't mean we  _can't_ , right? Several pillows for buffers and gentle movements oughta be fine..."

_What if I can't be gentle?_

_**Don't worry, you can do it. I mean, it's not like our very first time where we could barely control ourselves.** _

_I don't want to worsen your injury._

_**Lex, there's no better painkiller than being intimate with you. When we're together, all pain goes away.** _

_Why do I always let you talk me into these things?_

_**Cause deep down, you know you like it, too.**_ "Come on," I added aloud as I stood back up and took hold of his hand.

Several moments later, Lexus made a fort of pillows, most of which I felt were unnecessary. The two of us were naked with my back draped over one of the pillows and Lexus kneeling between my legs. I couldn't help stroking myself as he slowly worked his way inside. The breach was rather easy and painless, as if my entrance was accustomed to receiving his length, which it was.

Lexus took hold of my thighs just underneath the knees, holding my legs open as he gave two slow thrusts inside. He used his hold to rock inside me at a pace that was somewhere between slow and medium speed. I don't know if it was because of the prolonged exposure to the secretions inside me or the sight of Lexus struggling to control his movements, but I couldn't have been more aroused.

His movements and my position were actually helping drive his shaft fairly deep inside; deep enough to stroke along some of my more sensitive areas. The pleasure built and built, travelling to other areas of my body. After a while, I stopped stroking myself and just stared as Lexus's gaze raked down my body to where we were joined and back up again.

I didn't know what kinds of faces I was making between our gasps, huffs, and moans. But, he really seemed to enjoy them. He figured out a way to carefully lean down enough to capture my lips in a sensual, languid kiss while he slowed his rocking down to shallow thrusts. I felt his lips on my jaw and chin before his tongue once again delved into my mouth.

His scent and taste nearly drove my body into a frenzy, as if it had just recognized that its Alpha was not only pressed against me, but was also inside and above me. I let out a trembling moan as he began to pick up the pace again, and I could have sworn I saw a sexually-charged smirk tugging on Lex's lips as he pulled away.

" _Lex!"_ I gasped as I undulated against him as he shifted his angle slightly and proceeded to drive me closer and closer to the brink. I reached my good arm out to slide it over his chest, dragging my fingers down a nipple.

" _Fuck!"_ I heard him cry out shortly after.

He came first, but I was only a few seconds behind. It was almost painful, how hard I came.  _ **Lex, we have to do that again...as soon as we recover.**_

My heart was still pounding in the aftermath of the release. But, Lex's was surely beating harder.

"Is...your arm...ok?" He asked between deep breaths of air.

"Are  _you_ ok?"

 _I asked first,_ he responded telepathically.

_**My arm's fine. More than fine. I think you blew a part of my mind away with that last thrust, though.** _

_What?_ I was treated to the sound of the Alpha's laughter.

I smiled at him as he laid down beside me. I wanted to tease him some more, but my eyelids began to feel quite heavy.  _ **We are definitely doing that again,**_ I insisted mentally.  _ **I'm just going to take a little nap, and then we can do it again…**_

I felt some shifting as he ensured that the arm I had in a sling was elevated with a pillow.  _Rest well, my little dragon_ _._ Those were the last words I heard before sleep claimed me.

_::_


	10. 10

In spite of being surrounded by three of the people that I trusted the most, my heart was still pounding heavily inside my chest. I still firmly felt that Ashur was still worse than Nestor, but I couldn't ignore the fact that the Husky had put me in the hospital the last time I saw him. I mean, it wasn't as if I didn't trust my friends and my mate to keep me safe, and I didn't consider myself that much of a coward. And yet, as I clenched Lex's hand a little tighter with my one good hand, I realized that I was still so very apprehensive about all of it.

_Just say the word and we can head back._

I heard my mate's offer through our telepathic connection and, though I couldn't quite explain how, it managed calmed me down a bit. Just because I had one arm in a sling didn't mean I was any more vulnerable, right? I swallowed hard as I locked eyes with him. "No, I want to do this. I  _need_ to see how much he's changed, if at all," I insisted aloud.

 _ **I need to try to lay my fears to rest.**_ I added mentally.

 _I understand,_ came Lex's response.

"Your mind's about to be blown," Sabine commented as we neared the door to a simple, one-floor house. "Last I saw Nestor, he was firmly wrapped around his bubblegum mate's little finger."

"Bubblegum?" I questioned as she rang the doorbell.

"Hello everyone! Please come in," greeted Nestor's mate as he all but flung open the door in his eagerness.

His hair was a soft, golden brown that curled around his face like a halo of innocence. His eyes were a slightly darker golden brown hue. Though there were no ruffles in sight, he wore a pink and white striped apron with pockets over his white shirt and jeans.

Morgan and I immediately took off our shoes at the entrance out of habit, and I was relieved when Sabine and Lexus followed suit because the floor seemed downright spotless. We were urged to wear a pair of several "guest" slippers of various sizes. Sabine's feet were still too tiny for most of them but she didn't hesitate to wear the smallest pair she could find.

I couldn't help but gape at the tidy living room and kitchen as we walked in. The colors were soft and in warm hues of creams and browns. They had a few potted plants that seemed to be well taken care of and a few photos were even hung on the wall, though I was a bit too anxious to go take a closer look at them.

In the midst of my perusal, I didn't even realize when Nestor's mate urged us all to sit down on two out of the three sofas they had in their living room. The top layer seemed to be made from suede. My hand began to subconsciously pet the edge of the cushion I was sitting on as if the sensation were somehow therapeutic or grounding.

"I'm Nestor's mate, Alrico," he began as he went around shaking everyone's hands, taking extra care with mine, even though my dominant hand was just fine and it was my other arm that was in a sling. "But you can call me Al." His hand was warm, but not the least bit sweaty. I couldn't say the same about my own. "It's a pleasure to meet you all," he continued. "Nestor has few friends, so you're more than welcome to come visit again whenever you wish."

I felt a slightly queasy feeling in my stomach at that comment, as I recalled a time when Nestor had no shortage of "friends." Very few of them weren't crass. It made me wonder if it had been a conscious choice for Nestor not to continue those friendships. If so, then he had surely matured since then.

"Nes should be back from his meeting in about fifteen minutes or so," Alrico admitted. "But, I have a tray of snacks for everyone and made coffee and tea," he continued as he pulled a notepad and a pen from his apron pocket. "So, just let me know which you'd prefer. Let's start with Sabine…"

I watched, nearly entranced, as the young man went around taking orders as if he were a waiter. When he got around to taking mine, I realized I couldn't really stomach anything, let alone coffee or tea. "Uh, just a small glass of water for me if you don't mind," I responded.

The expression on his face seemed to show some concern before he gave a forced smile. "Then, I'll be right back. Please make yourselves at home in the meantime," he said in parting.

I glanced at Morgan and felt relieved that I wasn't the only one that seemed more than a bit shocked at Nestor's house and mate. I was shorter in stature than I liked. My fragile frame became an insecurity of mine. But, Alrico was smaller by a few inches all around. The only person he seemed to really know was Sabine, so it was impressive the way he played host so thoroughly for a group of strangers.

By the time Alrico began to hand out everyone's drinks, we all heard the sound of the lock of the front door turning. Subconsciously, I had begun to grip my mug a little tighter. Our host wasted no time in rushing over to the door to greet his mate as he entered the house.

We were all riveted as Nestor indulgently bent low, after putting on a pair of slippers, so that Alrico could take hold of his face and kiss him in greeting.

Gone were the longish, messy locks of dark brown hair that Nestor used to have in high school. His hair had been trimmed into a more professional cut. His facial hair was also tidy, which made his face appear more mature. He wore a button-down shirt and black tie with a pair of grey slacks that matched his grey eyes. As he approached us, Nestor placed his hands into his pockets and took on a stance of nervousness that I had only ever seen whenever Lexus used to call him out on his crappy decisions in high school.

He relaxed significantly when Alrico took one of his hands out of a pocket and held it in his own. The look that the Husky Alpha sent down to his mate was unmistakable. It was almost alien in nature to see the glint of love and adoration in those grey eyes. I felt like quite the intruder in their home.

My body tensed in a jolt when Lexus suddenly stood up and extended his hand for Nestor to shake. He even gave him a slight pat on the shoulder with his other hand. "You look well," Lex greeted. "It's been a while."

The smallest of smiles formed on Nestor's face, as if in relief. "Well, you look better," he admitted as he motioned towards one of Lex's arms. "My days of keeping up the bulk are long gone. My mate keeps me just healthy enough."

Alrico made a petulant expression on his face as he pinched Nestor's arm. "You'd be even healthier if you didn't keep sneaking bites from the desserts I make for work," he pointed out.

I nearly spilled my water when Nestor's gray eyes shifted over to me and my slung arm. "Uh...h-hi?" I greeted in a voice that trembled more than it should have.

"I don't know what surprises me more," Nestor admitted with a shake of his head. "The fact that Avion's an Omega or the fact that you two crossed paths again to the point of becoming mates." His expression then became nervous once again as he seemed to force himself to look me in the eye. "Avion, I know I can never make up for my past mistakes. But, I want you to know that I truly do regret them all. I should have apologized to you immediately...hell, none of that should have ever happened in the first place." His gaze fell to the floor as his frame drooped down in shame before locking eyes with me once more. "I'm sorry, Avion. I'm truly sorry for every way that I've wronged you."

The sincerity of his words had me floored. I realized, belatedly, that he had kept a good few feet away from me and had kept as still as possible as if he didn't want to upset me by getting any closer. I briefly glanced at Alrico, but the smaller man's worried gaze was firmly set on his mate's face.

I took a deep breath. Making nice and pretending that nothing happened wasn't something that was ever going to happen. We weren't ever going to be besties or anything. But, there was something I  _could_ do in order to take that first step of progress and to hopefully wipe that worried expression off of Al's face.

"Hey man, I'd rather you not hold onto any of that anymore," I responded as I steadily held his gaze. "I wasn't perfect, either. A more rational, collected person wouldn't have acted as recklessly as I did all the time. Back then, I didn't really think about how I worried others when I behaved that way." I admitted as I stood up and walked over. "For what it's worth, I knew you were not yourself that day. It doesn't downplay your actions, but I'm willing to move on from it...aren't  _you_?" I concluded as I held out my good hand for him to shake.

The warmth of Nestor's larger hand around mine as we shook hands, the deep relief I saw in Alrico's tear-brimmed eyes, and the release of tension in the Husky's shoulders, were things I would never forget.

So,  _this_  was what it was like to grow as a person.

Who knew?

::::

It was quickly apparent that Nestor hadn't been in contact with Ashur since their days in high school. We spared no detail as we caught them up to speed. I found Alrico's candid reactions to everything that happened quite amusing.

"And that's why your arm's in a sling?" Alrico asked as he handed me a peanut butter cookie, possibly in sympathy.

"Pretty much," I responded before biting into the cookie. The guy was quite the baker. I was starting to see how being mated to someone like Alrico calmed Nestor down.

"We've been trying to track down the person, or per _sons_ , who hired that shady group in order to cause Avion grief," Morgan explained. "We were hoping you might know something, but if you haven't been in contact with Ashur at all…"

"But, he can find out, can't you Nes?" Alrico prompted. "You can visit him in prison and try to get him to talk!"

Nestor frowned. "I think my mate is right. Ashur could have easily planned for this before going on trial," he replied. "If I can get him to talk about it, I might be able to get some information out of him."

"We'd be much obliged," Lexus commented. "But, understand that no one's forcing you to do this. It's ok to say no."

The Husky shook his head as he sent me a determined glance. "Don't worry, I can do it. It's the  _least_  I could do."

::::

As the four of us left Nestor and Alrico's home, with a promise to visit once more, my mate pulled out his phone and began to frown as he saw its contents.

"What is it?" I asked.

"My father wants to see us," Lexus explained.

I felt my stomach do a queasy flip.  _"Can we bring reinforcements?"_ I whispered as I glanced pointedly at Morgan and Sabine.

"I'm afraid not," Lexus sighed. "We'll drop them off on our way there."

All too soon, we arrived back at Morgan's apartment and the two of them were out of the car. A part of me wanted to stay behind along with them. I pressed my hand to the window as Morgan waved and yelled 'good luck' before walking through the apartment door.

I took in a deep breath until I could feel the stretch of my lungs before letting the air out again. After having heard that it was Lexus's father that helped to get Morgan out of that hostage situation, I was determined  _not_ to cause the aged Alsatian more aggravation than normal, at least not on purpose. My mother taught me to defend myself from insult or injury, but that didn't mean I had to add fuel to the fire all the time.

The visit to Nestor's opened my eyes to the fact that I needed to curb that kind of behavior. I needed to grow the hell up. Fighting resolved nothing. Negotiation and compromise did. With those things in mind, I braved myself for a confrontation that I was already dreading.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Lexus asked while keeping his gaze on the road.

I must have been so focused on my own misgivings that I didn't realize I had subconsciously closed up my thoughts. "I just don't want to get your dad riled up again, enough to order around your mom or to upset you…" I confessed. "Especially if he had to pay ransom money to rescue Morgan."

"Just because my father got all bent out of shape over the fact that I'm not giving him any heirs doesn't mean that he'd want anything bad to happen to you or Morgan," Lex insisted.

"Didn't you say you had to call in a favor for him to ask around?"

"The favor wasn't for him to ask around, it was to gather the funds they were asking for," Lex clarified with a frown. "I wanted to gradually pay him back, but he refused."

I briefly wondered if Mr. Streicher would try to get  _me_ to pay him back somehow…

"If he so much as tries to demand any form of payment from you," Lexus responded. "Then it's the last he'll ever see of us."

As nice as it was to hear the conviction in Lex's voice, that he put us first even before his family...I still felt a sense of guilt. I didn't want to be the cause of a rift between them. No family was perfect.

All too soon, we arrived at the estate. I felt the anxiety building inside me, to the point that Lexus turned towards me before we even took a step inside. When I glanced up at him, he dove to give me quite a thorough kiss. I could have easily refused it or forced him to stop. But, at that particular moment, I welcomed the sudden gift. I could think of nothing else other than the warmth of Lex's tongue against my own and the reaction of my body as it recognized the scent and the taste of my mate.

When he pulled away, I was a little dazed. I mean, it was more than a bit embarrassing at just how much that kiss affected me. But, if Lexus noted it, he didn't mention it in the slightest.

"Ready?" He asked as he took my good hand and gave it a squeeze.

I nodded as I allowed him to take the lead.

::

a/n: Tomorrow's my birthday so I'd figure I'd post this while I had the chance!


	11. 11

Lexus and I were seated in two chairs across a desk in Giles's study. The man in question seemed to have a poker face on as his intimidating yellow eyes shifted from one face to another. The silence in the room had extended for several minutes. But, Lex and I had conversed mentally back and forth the entire time.

::

**_“You sure you have no idea what he wants us for?”_ **

_“I could only make guesses…”_

**_“He hasn’t said a thing in at least five minutes.”_ **

_"It's one of his parenting tactics. Whenever I messed up as a kid, my anxiety while waiting for him to talk was always more of a punishment than anything he said."_

**_“Really? My mom would just ground me from everything I liked…no desserts, no games. In retrospect, it didn’t work as well as it should have over the years with how many fights I kept sparking up…”_ **

::

“Lexus,” Giles spoke aloud, startling me from our shared inner thoughts. “Your mate seems to be a handful. I _urge_ you to order him to remain by your side until you can order him to remain indoors in your new home.”

He wanted me to stick to Lexus like glue? What next? One of those child leashes?

“ _What_?” Lexus questioned with a frown. “And deprive him of the rest of his college education?”

“No one’s gonna keep me from getting my degree,” I grumbled.

“If you care so much about him, you’ll do what must be done for his safety,” Giles responded.

“Sir, you may have always had a controlling nature,” I countered. “But, Lexus isn’t like that-”

“ _Listen,_ Omega," the aged Alsatian growled, cutting me off. "Whether I like it or not, you have become indispensable to my son," Giles stated as he motioned towards Lex. "I _never_ want to see my son broken again, and he won’t _ever_ fully recover if these kinds of things keep happening and you’re one day killed in the process.”

I felt like he had pelted me in the face with a snowball and physically ended up jerking back. My first instinct was to bark back with something clever, but as I gazed over at Lexus, I saw something that kept my mouth shut. The blue eyes I liked so much had a touch of tenseness, pain, and fear.

It was that pain along with the stray thoughts he subconsciously broadcasted that made my heart clench.

_He’s hurt, but alive. He’s alive, and that’s all that matters. He’ll be fine...we’ll be more careful from now on._

That was when I realized that Lexus had been hiding his frantic feelings from me. When he had found out I was gone, he had just about lost it. His father saw him at his worst, Giles had been a first-hand witness.

“Lex…” I whispered as I reached out to place my good hand on his arm. “I wasn’t joking about that therapy.”

When the blue eyes turned their gazes to me, they held a touch of strength and determination. But, most importantly, they held a warmth that seemed to comfort me from the inside. I could only hope that he’d trust me with his insecurities more in the future.

“Neither was I, Avi,” he responded. “I’ll make some appointments for us at your earliest convenience.”

“Therapy alone isn’t going to keep your mate safe!” Giles interjected. “As an Alpha, it’s your duty to keep him away from any dangerous situations.”

“You’re right,” Lexus agreed. “Self-defense courses for different scenarios wouldn’t hurt. I could use a few of them myself.”

I couldn't help the smirk that tugged on the corner of my lips. Lexus didn't need much help to fend off any attackers. But, I still liked the idea of him learning side by side with me. As much as sticking by his side 24/7 wasn't reasonable; I really _did_ want to spend more time with him in general.

“ _Why_ do you insist on ignoring your instincts as an Alpha?” Giles argued as he suddenly stood up in a huff. “Alpha Commands have been used for centuries. You won’t be able to keep them bottled up inside forever!”

“You’re right,” Lexus once again agreed. “I _won’t_ be able to keep from using an Alpha Command. It’s instinct.”

From the corner of my eye, I could see the smug expression that formed on Giles’s face in response to Lex’s words. As much as I tried, I couldn’t quite read my mate’s eyes. Just where was he going with this?

**“Avion Dominic Arter…”**

The Alpha Command hit me hard in the gut. Lexus hadn’t even fully completed it, but I felt the force of it constricting around me heavily like a cocoon. In spite of the weight, I still trusted him not to order me to do anything stupid.

**“As your mate and Alpha, I declare that you have the choice as to whether or not to obey ANY of my commands for the rest of our lives!”**

My mind reeled. The cocoon that nearly suffocated me a moment before seemed to release like a magnificent cape fluttering along behind me. I felt like some kind of snow queen from an animated movie…as if Lexus was a king and he had somehow named me regent. A freedom that I couldn’t quite explain filled me right up.

Giles slumped back down onto his desk chair with a groan as he rubbed at his temples. "You will surely regret doing that, my son,” he sighed.

"I'll make _sure_ that he won't," I responded with a grin, unable to hide my joy.

::::::::

_In the weeks that followed, there were no other disturbing events. Lexus, Morgan and I did go to therapy sessions once a week. Sometimes individually and sometimes as a group. My mate also signed us up for self-defense classes, though I was only able to observe for the first few weeks due to my arm._

_Morgan and Sabine were officially mates, as was made evident by Morgan’s family emblem on her shoulder. My arm eventually healed up completely, and I was ever so grateful that it wasn’t my dominant one. If it had been my dominant arm, I wouldn’t have been able to survive the onslaught of college assignments we were given. Once again, I considered myself lucky._

_To provide Morgan and Sabine some privacy, I moved out of the apartment, and she moved in with him. Lexus couldn't have been happier to have me join him. In a blur of final exams, one semester ended and another began. During lunch, we were finally all finally able to gather together. Derrick and I developed a closer friendship, and Morgan didn't hesitate to welcome him into the fold. The three of us shared a history class in the new semester, and we found that the three of us were excellent study buddies._

_Nestor was true to his promise of getting information out of Ashur. Morgan had urged him to give a report on everything that the twisted young man had told him. Though the authorities were not able to capture them all, they managed to uncover some of the criminals that had held us for ransom. When Morgan and I were called in to identify them, we both were easily able to recognize the commander by his heterochromatic eyes and height. We were both able to rest well that night._

_The more that my arm healed, the more I was able to take part in the self-defense classes with Lexus. Those lessons usually ended up with the two of us showering together in his apartment afterward, something that I always took full advantage of. Just as we learned more and more about one another’s bodies, our minds naturally opened up more and more to each other’s thoughts._

_Our developing relationship wasn’t always smooth sailing. Whenever we were both stressed out at the same time, whether over classes or due to family, we argued. There were times when we couldn’t make our schedules line up and the time apart put a strain on our bond. But those moments weren’t commonplace, because whenever only one of us was feeling pressure and stress, the other was there for support._

_In that manner, a semester became a quarter. A quarter became a year. Lexus, Derrick, and Deziray graduated first. And the next thing we knew, Morgan, Sabine, and I followed._

::::::::

“So, how did it go?”  

I could easily note the slight tone of nervousness in my mate’s voice.  He was clearly more anxious than I was but a few moments before. I shook my head at this thought, which almost sent Lexus into a panic.

"Calm down, Lex," I urged him as I took hold of his face in both my hands for him to focus on my eyes. I hadn't grown any taller over the years, but my body was a lot stronger than in the past. "It's a done deal. I take over from Harman in two weeks."

The smile that formed on Lex's face was so bright; it was almost blinding. The taller man eagerly leaned down to give me a congratulatory kiss, and I held him in place with a hand to the back of his head so that I could fully exploit it. The press of his full lips against mine, though a familiarity by then, was always a welcome sensation. The taste of him was, as well…of a dark chocolate that was addictively bittersweet. When I felt his arms tugging me closer, I knew that I had well and truly distracted him from the fact that we were still on the school grounds.

I couldn’t help but feel grateful that there were no students on the high school campus so late in the afternoon. Seeing their teachers making out in the hallway would have surely been considered gross to them. I smiled at my Alpha. “I guess this means we get to have lunch together again,” I pointed out. “Right, Mr. Streicher, Drama scholar in classroom G 102?”

“I’m looking forward to it, Mr. Arter, History scholar in classroom E 203,” he responded without hesitation.

“Wait, how did you know I was assigned to E 203?” I questioned.

Lexus shrugged. “I asked one of the Sophomores where his history classroom was last year.”

 ** _“Isn’t that cheating?”_** I mentally teased.

 _"Why, yes. Yes, it is."_ Lexus sent back.

The sounds of barking, growling, and a yelp drew our attention elsewhere. The two of us immediately ran towards the source. A tense Pomeranian growled menacingly at a limping Border Collie.

“Just what is going on here?” Lexus asked. **“Change back, both of you.”** He Alpha Commanded.

I couldn’t help but feel that it was the kind of situation that the Alpha Command was actually useful for; to break up fights and to settle situations.

The Pomeranian was a young girl with long, light brown hair pulled back in a ponytail. The Border Collie was a taller girl with a curly, black bob and bangs. She cradled her forearm to her chest.

“She _bit_ me, Mr. Streicher!” the Border Collie cried out.

“Yeah Teach, but _she_ Alpha Commanded me not to perform my part in the play!” the Pomeranian countered.

“Is that true, Nadia?” Lex questioned.

The dark-haired girl’s gaze fell to the floor. “It’s not for the reason she thinks!” Nadia explained. “I heard some of the other girls talking about setting up an “accident” for Saydee during the play to embarrass her in front of the whole school!” She finally lifted her brown eyes to look at Saydee. “I just didn’t want you to get hurt.”

Saydee straightened her back as she regarded the taller girl before her. Her green eyes darted to Nadia, us, and back. “Wh-why didn’t you just _say_ that, then?” She demanded as she stepped towards her and grabbed Nadia’s arm. “Lemme take a look at that. I didn’t bite you too hard, did I?”

“No…” Nadia trailed off, blushing at the contact. “It doesn’t even hurt anymore.”

Lexus let out a sigh beside me, rubbing at his temples. “Then Nadia, if you would please release Saydee from the command? Then, what do you plan to do; do you want to report Saydee for biting you?”

“What? No!” Nadia immediately responded. “It was all my fault. **Saydee, I release you from my command**.”

“Can you name the students that wanted to sabotage Saydee?” I asked her.

Nadia nodded. “Maddy and Lee,” she answered.

“I’m going to have a talk with those two,” Lexus decided. “Come on, let’s take you to the nurse’s office. She’s probably gone home by now, but I know where she keeps the First Aid kit.”

“I’m coming, too!” Saydee announced.

“Avi, why don’t you head home first?” Lexus suggested. “I’ll catch up with you later.”

"Got it," I responded after I reached over to kiss him on the cheek.

As I headed towards the parking lot, I couldn’t help but smile at Saydee’s distant words.

“Hey, Teach? Was that your mate? He’s hot!”

The irony of the younger generations approving of the way I looked didn’t slip past me. I opened an umbrella as I stepped out into the sun. Though I was still fond of hooded jackets and sweaters, I preferred to wear them in the comfort of our home. I couldn’t help but feel that I used the hoods to hide my face more than to protect it from the sun’s rays in the past. The therapy sessions I had gone to helped me realize as much.

My car had tinted windows all the way around. The model was neither new nor decrepit, but it was a graduation gift from my parents. I couldn't have been more grateful not to have to share a car anymore since I felt bad that Lex had to be the one to drive us everywhere. I was just about to start the car and head to our shared home when my phone rang. When I read the name Deziray, I immediately answered.

“Hey, what’s up?” I asked.

“ _We have some big news. I’m inviting everyone to our apartment for dinner. Bring Lex!_ ” she responded.

“Alright,” I replied, wondering what the news could be. I sent Lexus a quick text to meet me over at Derrick and Dez’s place and headed that way.

When I arrived, Morgan and Sabine were already there. Derrick had opened the door for me. “There he is! The man of the hour,” he greeted as he clapped a hand on my shoulder.

"What's going on?" I asked the Doberman.

"We'll tell you when Lex catches up, and we're all here," Deziray called from the kitchen.

About thirty minutes later, all six of us were seated around a table eating take-out and conversing. When we were all down to our chosen beverages, Derrick stood up.

“Dez and I are finally in a fairly settled state with our jobs and the apartment…” he began. “So, we’ve decided to get married. And, on that note, we’d like Avion to be my best man.”

“Wait, _me_?” I asked. “Not Lex?” I was genuinely caught by surprise. Lexus had always been Derrick’s closest friend, and I was definitely going to be Morgan’s best man whenever he tied the knot with Sabine.

“Yeah, you,” Derrick responded with a snort. “The title of best man goes to my closest friend, right? You’re it. It’s not like I want to offend Lexus and Morgan, but you’ve helped me the most over the years and have more than earned the title.”

A part of me couldn't have been more stunned. What Derrick said was true. I had helped them find a decent-sized apartment for them. When the Doberman was ready to take over his father's business, I had my dad help his dad with the necessary paperwork and the hiring of new hands. Though it was true that we had grown closer over the years, I never thought that I would "out-stage" Lexus as Derrick's closest friend.

 _“You didn’t out-stage anyone,”_ Lexus countered as his voice easily made its way into my thoughts. _"Sometimes we just grow closer to others than anticipated. I don’t mind at all.”_

 ** _“You mean it? You’re not upset?”_** I asked back.

 _“It’s less work for me. I get to just show up for the show,”_ my mate teased.

“Well then, if that’s the case,” I said aloud. “Then, I accept.”

“It’ll be good practice for when you’re the best man at _my_ future wedding,” Morgan responded.

“Says the man who hasn’t even _asked_ me yet,” Sabine pointed out as she gently poked Morgan on the side.

“But, I thought you wouldn’t mind if Avion’s the best man,” Morgan replied.

“Not about _that_ ,” Sabine huffed.

“Did you mean about _this_ then?” Morgan said as he pulled out a jewelry box with a ring nested inside and slid off his chair to kneel.

Sabine, as well as everyone else in the room, became silent. I shot a glance to Derrick and Deziray, who both had sly expressions on their faces. I began to realize the other reason I had been asked to be the best man.

“Sabine, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?” Morgan asked softly.

"Are you freaking kidding me?" Sabine sobbed. Her happy tears drew forth similar feelings to everyone. "Yes, you silly man. Of course, I will!"

After Morgan slid the ring on her finger, the two of them kissed and embraced. Morgan began to voice what I had begun to suspect. “When Derrick and Deziray talked to me about their plans for a wedding, I realized that there was nothing stopping me from asking you to marry me,” he explained. “Would you mind it if we had a double wedding with them? We share the same friends and ideas...why not the costs, too?”

Sabine began to laugh and wipe at her tears. “Yeah, I’d like that,” she admitted. “Wait, is that why you didn’t ask me to be the maid of honor?” She asked as she rounded on Deziray.

“Who said you can’t still be my maid of honor and I yours?” Deziray countered. “We’ll just stand by each other during each other’s vows.”

“We’re getting married!” Sabine cried out in excitement as she hugged Deziray tightly. “And we’re each other’s maid of honor. I love it!”

“I knew you would,” Deziray confessed.

“So, I’m really the best man twice?” I questioned. When Morgan and Derrick insisted, I rubbed the back of my neck in embarrassment. Lexus was right when he said that all he had to do was watch the show. I felt a bit nervous when the weight of the responsibility kicked in.

I was suddenly in charge of not just _one_ set of wedding rings, but _two_.

  
  
  



	12. My Faceless Encounter with Ashur

**a/n: I was thinking of making this a "oneshot" side story, since it involves a peek at Nestor's neck of the woods. But, it would have been too much trouble to create a whole new story just for this oneshot. Therefore, here is a tiny My Faceless Bus Stalker Alpha one-shot from the perspective of Nestor the husky.**

**::**

**My Faceless Encounter with Ashur**

**Nestor's POV:**

"You look like you have the weight of the whole world on your shoulders."

I was actually startled as the sound of my husband's voice cut through my wandering thoughts and brought me back to the present, where I was seated at a desk staring at a computer screen with the address to where Ashur was being held. Alrico's voice was gentle and full of concern, and yet it carried so much power. He was more than my light, he was a relentless flame that seemed determined to turn my past failures into ashes.

"That's because it's exactly what it feels like," I responded. "The weight of the whole world."

I always trusted him with the truth. When he first took an interest in me, I was still struggling with controlling my impulses and getting a better handle on my emotions. Though I had tried to push him away by telling him about my past, it had the opposite effect. The honesty between us was what helped to solidify our relationship.

"I've told you about my years at high school," I prompted. "I've told you what Ashur was like. A part of me  _cared_  about him, possibly even loved him, but I was just a tool to him. Just like everyone else." I continued as Alrico wrapped his arms around my shoulders from behind in a hug. "He found enjoyment in manipulating others into doing whatever he wanted. And, I have to admit that a part of me is scared that he'll figure out why I'm really there too soon…"

"Even if he does figure it out, the important thing is that you'd have tried," my mate pointed out. "Remember how good you said you felt when you were finally able to apologize to Avion and he accepted it?" He added. "Letting go of that guilt was good for you. I don't want you to be tortured by guilt again. So, just try and then let the chips fall where they may. Remember that you're not to blame for Ashur's possible lack of cooperation."

A smirk tugged the corner of my lips. "Will I be rewarded for my efforts, I wonder?" I teased.

" _With double the dessert_ ," Alrico whispered heatedly into my ear.

The insinuation caused a shiver to roll down my spine. I could think of no better motivation than that. When my gaze once again fell on the prison location, it was with a glint of determination.

::

When I walked into the reception area, I was given once-overs by a few of the women I passed. But, the ring on my left finger usually kept any touches at bay. I was instructed to place all of my personal belongings, including my cellphone into a small locker before being checked in. I was printed a visiting badge and made my way through a metal detector. I was told that Ashur was not allowed in the regular visiting area and I was only allowed to visit him through a non-contact box.

That was actually a relief. Ashur and I were not going to be able to physically see one another, just talk. My mere body language and the look in my eyes could have given away what I was really there for. Since it was only our voices, I just had to concentrate on keeping my voice leveled.

I took a few calming breaths as they brought Ashur over to the box.

"Nes?" Ashur asked hesitantly.

"Ash," I responded. During high school, Ashur did most of the talking. I had to take care not to get too talkative.

"I can hardly believe it," Ashur responded, sounding relieved. "When they told me it was you, I thought I might have been hearing things."

"Never imagined we'd meet again under these circumstances," I admitted. The statement was true.

"Yeah, these shitty-ass circumstances," Ashur scoffed. "Have you heard about how I got here?"

"Not all the details," I replied as I tried to remember to keep my responses short. I heard him shifting as if he was leaning forward to tell me a secret. A frown formed on my face as I recalled him doing the same in the past many times.

"I found our favorite little albino yapper," he rumbled like a feline. I could almost imagine the smirk on his face. "He's an  _Omega_. Can you imagine? How much  _fun_ we would have had if one of us laid claim to him when he turned eighteen."

I took in a sharp breath of air as my hands balled up into fists. Though I had denied it when we were in high school, it was unmistakable just what kind of "fun" Ashur wanted to have with the yorkie. Once again, I was disgusted with how I had allowed myself to be led around by someone like him.

"I know, right?" Ashur continued, having taken my sharp breath for surprise. "An Omega." His tone of voice shifted as it began to drip with anger. "But, I was beaten to the chase by Lexus Streicher. It's his fault I'm here. Him and a bunch of other pussies."

"Lexus and others?" I asked.

"Yeah, but don't think I let them get away with it," Ashur drawled. "A few subordinates owed me and I had them pay me back through a few  _scares_."

"Subordinates?"

"No one you know," the prisoner pointed out. "Just a few cocksuckers I caught fucking with professors on campus. Malcom and Jacob."

"You sure I don't know them?" I prompted. I doubted that I would get afar with such common first names. I needed Ashur to divulge just a little more.

"Well, I mean Jacob's a Farley and Malcom's a Brixton," Ashur elaborated. "But they're nothing like their older brothers were. Total dungjacks."

"They paid you back?" I questioned, once again trying not to convey any kind of emotion through my tone of voice. And that was saying a lot, as I couldn't have been more relieved to have last names to go with the first names of Ashur's accomplices. The Farleys and Brixtons were in for a rude awakening.

"They were the only ones with deep enough pockets to hire the Raboche. My cousin was right, they really  _do_ exist. And, from what I've heard, they did quite the number on the yapper…"

::

As stressful as it felt to try to act like I did in the past so that I could get information out of Ashur, it was even  _more_ stressful to report everything that he told me. That particular prison recorded all visits with audio, so I also had digital proof to back up the report. Alrico was so proud of me, I had a feeling I would get a homemade lunch every day for at least a week, double dessert and all.


	13. 12

We all survived the double wedding. Neither of the wedding parties chose to have ring bearers, so it was my responsibility to procure the rings. In the excitement and nervousness, Sabine lost one of her earrings and decided to wear a mismatched set so that they wouldn't be late to the ceremony. Derrick, for all his bravado about being ready, sweated so much that he had to change out of his inner shirt.

I, myself, had been forced into a grey three-piece with a violet-blue satin tie and pocket square, and a periwinkle blue inner shirt. In spite of my reservations, I had to admit that the girls had chosen well. The violet-blue hue went well with my pale eyes. Then, I saw Lexus wearing his black suit and black inner shirt with a contrasting grey tie and vest. Keeping my hands to myself became a struggle after that.

During the ceremony, I had noticed that he was seated next to Morgan and Derrick's grandmothers. The ladies then seemed to take him hostage, as Lex ended up seated between the both of them during the reception. Before I knew it, it was time for me to give a speech as best man to both wedding parties.

"Good evening, everyone. For all visiting families, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Avion Arter and, for reasons that are still unknown to me, I was chosen to be the best man for both grooms," I began. "Let's face it, having a best man with such an odd name like Avion pretty much  _guarantees_ that I'll be referred to as that 'Best Man guy' by visiting family members all night long. Thanks, guys." I tossed over my shoulder at both grinning grooms.

My eyes sought out Lexus. As my partner, he was not only my gauge in regards to my best man speech, but also a calming presence for any lingering nervousness. When our gazes met, I couldn't help but smile.

"We lost an earring…believe me Sabine, the mismatched set looks even better," I recounted. "We lost a dress shirt and had to swap it out for a different one…which you barely managed to pull off, Derrick." I teased. "We were even missing a bridesmaid during the ceremony. But, I heard that we found her again for the reception! Talk about perfect timing." I allowed the crowd a moment of laughter before shooting Morgan a glance. "These things happen, Morgan. A perfect wedding would have been a boring tale to tell the kids, so cut her some slack."

"In spite of the little mishaps here and there, as they always seem to happen during important events," I continued. "My four closest friends managed to get married in a lovely ceremony that was jam-packed with family, friends, and well-wishes." I lifted my glass of champagne and aimed it towards the two pairs of couples. "I would like everyone to join me in a toast to the brides and grooms. May they continue to support one another, and may they give me the privilege of being called ' _Uncle_  Best Man guy' by their future kids."

After the toast and a sip of champagne, I turned my gaze back towards Lexus. "On the  _subject_  of uncles, there is one more thing I'd like to do while I still have this mike," I announced. "Lexus, my partner and mate…what do you say? You wanna tie the knot?" I had asked beforehand and was given full permission by both couples to use my platform to propose. They couldn't have agreed more.

 _Wait, are you serious? Are you sure?_ I immediately heard in my mind. Was that a tremulous hope I was hearing in Lex's tone?

 _ **Yeah, Lex. Would you marry me?**_ I responded back telepathically.

" _ **LET'S DO IT!"**_

Lexus had stood up and belted out the Alpha Command so fast that it caused a wave of laughter from the guests. In the past, I had felt the crushing weight of Alpha Commands suffocating and humiliating me. But, as I allowed Lex's response to wash over me, I realized that it was a command I really wanted to fulfill. For the first time in my life, I felt  _empowered_  by it. The blue-eyed man had given me that.

"Then, I invite everyone here to join us around this time next year," I concluded with a smile so wide that it was sure to be goofy. "To the 'Best Man guy's' wedding reception."

::::

I ran my finger along the engraved dragon on my titanium engagement band as I waited for Lex to finish his shower. The ring echoed the emblem on my neck, with a different symbol all the way around. Our four friends were well into their second week of their respective honeymoons. Though I had planned for the two of us to shop for rings together, Lexus had apparently already ordered custom rings for us weeks ago. The blue German shepherd simply hadn't gotten the chance to propose before I did.

A part of me wondered how my Lexus would have proposed. He would have surely been more creative than my spontaneous speech. However, I could tell that he was quite happy that I had been the one to ask  _him_. It seemed to shake away any lingering doubts he had about my feelings for him.

Our bond and mental connection was quite open by that point. I should have been scared about it, but it had been so gradual that I barely even noticed. I intrinsically knew that Lexus fretted over any of his students being bullied, just as he knew that I wanted to challenge any of my students that felt history to be boring. We shared a love of teaching, of being Scholars, and of watching the young minds grow to challenge us right back.

_Is my fiancé ready for me?_

I smiled as I gingerly rolled onto my back in a stretch and smiled at him from the bed.  _ **The real question is if**_ **you** _ **are,**_ I responded with a hint of mischief. Lexus actually hesitated before sitting down on the edge of the bed. Both of us were already stark naked.

"If it's  _me_  that you want," he replied out loud. "I don't mind us going about this the other way around. Unlike you, however, I  _will_ need lube."

"I think we should save that for when we go on our  _own_ honeymoon," I admitted. "We'll have plenty of time to try out more things then, and safely."

A wide smile formed on Lex's face. "You know, I admit I might have been a bit apprehensive about it before," he confessed. "But, now I fully trust you."

I raised a pale eyebrow at that. "When you say it like that, it only makes me want to try it all the more," I added as I tugged him onto the bed and gave him a quick kiss. "But, right now, I'm not patient enough."  _ **I need you, Lex.**_

I felt his arms wrap around me as he leaned down for more kisses. The two of us were kneeling on the bed at this point. He was my Alpha and I was his Omega. But, the titles meant nothing to us, not in the way society declared it to be. They didn't define what we were to one another.

I heard Lex's breath hitch as my mouth made its way down the side of his neck with nips and licks. I could all bus sense his heart skipping a beat as my teeth raked along a puckered bud on his chest.

At some point, he fell back on the bed and I followed him, my mouth seeking my partner's lower half as I took his heated length between my lips. One of his hands raked through my pale hair. It was amazing how that simple motion felt so good. Before I had the chance to really get him going, he urged me back up for another heated kiss.

I was so wrapped up in the sensation of his tongue sliding along my own that I didn't realize how he moved us so that my back was pressed against the bed and he was above me. I saw a glint in his blue eyes as he returned my very same gestures in kind. I arched my back as I felt his teeth on my chest. One of my hands automatically reached down to clutch at the Alpha's dark hair strands when I felt my own length engulfed in heat.

" _Lex_ ," I hissed.

Lexus gently lifted my knees up and I reached over to hold onto them while his fingers found their way inside me to stretch and spread the lubrication that Omegas naturally secreted. The next thing I knew, he was rocking his way inside me.

My legs wrapped around him as if to tug him even closer. But, he halted his movements as he once again sought my lips. I let out a shuddering sigh into the kiss. What seemed like ages ago, I didn't care for the taste of chocolate. Our ancestors couldn't even consume it while in feral form. However, I grew to rather enjoy dark chocolate. The bitter and decadent taste was a flavor that was unique to my mate. As funny as it sounded, it tasted like home to me.

It made me wonder if I had any particular taste of my own…

_Salted caramel._

The sound of Lex's thoughts made me frown and pull back. "Wait,  _really_? I'm salted caramel to you?" I questioned with a slight pant. Though my body was well into a state of arousal, the revelation of my 'flavor' intrigued me.

"Yes," Lexus affirmed.

"Wow, we'd make a pretty good ice cream combination-" Half of my laughter was muffled into another kiss as Lexus persistently drew my thoughts back to the heat building between us.

I refused to complain.

Especially when he pulled back to lift my legs vertically, slid a pillow beneath my hips, and then began to rock his way inside me. " _Damn_ ," I keened as he angled right towards my weaknesses in sharply circled thrusts. When he found his rhythm, he let go of my legs so that they curled against each of his shoulders and dove down to kiss me again.

We curled our arms around each other and I felt him give a gentle nip to my shoulder before he shifted again, changing the speed of his thrusts. The two of us gauged one another well by then. We knew what touches elicited the strongest responses in one other. As a couple, we knew how to draw out the pleasure whenever enough time was available, or to have quick fun within smaller breaks.

Neither of us had to work the following day. The best part about both of us being Scholars was that our schedules matched up identically when it came to having time off.

Lexus was well aware of our free time, by the way he slowed our pace back down. We had no rush. I remember how embarrassed I was the first time he told me how much he loved the pink flush along certain parts of my body whenever I was aroused. Lex never said that my pink nose was ugly in my canine form. He freely accepted all aspects of me.

Even the flaws that I felt I still had to work on. I had gotten Lexus into trouble a few times due to his refusal to Alpha Command me into anything in public, even when I was acting out without thinking. Much older Alphas gave Lexus a hard time, just like his father.

Though those moments of my temper getting the best of me were diminishing steadily, they still happened, and it was something I worked at every day…to have better control over my temper, especially in public.

The blue German Shepherd seemed to have sensed my thoughts, because he once again redirected them to the movement of our bodies. He began to piston faster and harder right along the areas of my core that made me feel weak and lightheaded all at once.

" _Hanh!"_ I cried out as my back arched off the bed.

 _There's my dragon_ , he thought as he moved back until he was able to grasp my thighs wider, using them as leverage to further pull me into his thrusts. His hips snapped into a fast pace and then slowed down into rougher and longer lunges. The changes drove me mad with rising lust.

By the pleased expression on the Alpha's face, he knew it, as well.

I gave one of his thighs a sharp pinch in retaliation, but it only led him to laugh as he continued to do as he pleased. His laughter was warm, sensual. When his lips met mine once again, I couldn't even remember why I had pinched him in the first place.

As his hand slid along my chest, I felt the coldness of the ring on his finger. All of the sensations mixed together were more than enough for me to fall off the peak. I cried out my release into his mouth.

A mere moment later, he followed. " _Avi,_ " he gasped as he spilled himself inside me.

I cupped the side of his face and ran my thumb along his cheek. When I noted the contrast of my pale hand along his bronze skin, I was reminded of a time when I once wanted nothing more than to have a similar appearance. I wanted any other hue of skin by my own. Any color of hair and eyes  _other_ than the ones I had.

I blamed my genetics for not allowing me to be normal, to look like everyone else.

But, then I made friends with Morgan, who had been treated just like I was due to the richness of his chocolate skin tone. He never thought of himself as anything less. Thanks to his positivity and his friendship, I began to let go of those insecurities.

And, thanks to Lex's love, I was able to finally lay those insecurities to rest.

 _ **I must really love you**_ , the stray thought broadcasted.

_Are you still in doubt?_

I shook my head. "Not in the slightest. I love you, Lexus Streicher."

The smile that formed on his face made the confession worth it.

"And I love  _you_ , Avion Arter-Streicher," he responded before giving me a gentle kiss.

I made a slight face. "Remind me not to give any of our future pups names that start with A and middle names beginning with S," I insisted.

"Why those letters specifically?" He wondered aloud.

"Think of what the initials would spell out and you'll figure it out."

He frowned as he thought about it. He then began to laugh unabashedly. I joined in.

Our laughter filled the room.

_END_

_a/n: Finally got into the right "head space" to bring this one to a conclusion (albeit a brief one). Let me know what you think!_


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